Half-Assed Reality
by MBC Kizaya Taishuro
Summary: This story takes on the view of Subtract, Add's younger, but non-existent, brother. Given the name, Subject-1020, he never knew his real parents or what his older brother was like. Just another experiment within the Laboratory with a repulsive view on the world. When it's time to finally escape, he finds that the outside is both undeniably cruel and at the same time, his only hope.
1. Child of Jaundice

_This world is meaningless and nonsensical. The only way to save it is to destroy it. This fake world filled with maggots infesting its soil and blood coursing through its veins. All of it doesn't matter._

_I never knew the outside world and what lay beyond these white walls. What caused me to be here in this place, though, is something I knew really well. I hate the world for it, for bringing me to this place. If only, there weren't the wars that forsake this land…if only…_

"What is forty four subtracted from ten thousand?"

"N-nine…thousand a-and nine hundred and f-f-fifty six…"

"What is the genes in DNA and RNA?"

"A-adenine…thymine…gu-guanine…cytosine…ura…cil…"

"What is the first ten elements?"

"Hydrogen…he-helium…lithium, b-beryllium…boron…car-carbon…nitrogen…o-oxygen…fluorine…and…and…"

"What's wrong? You forgot the last element. Raise the Nasod Electricity Output by 20%."

"Please, no! Please don't do that! I'll do anything, just please don't raise the Output!"

The loud whirring of machinery deafened out my screams, bring bouts of extreme pain. _This world is meaningless and filled with pain._

"Let's continue. What's forty five subtracted from nine thousand and nine hundred and fifty six?"

_What is the meaning of this world? Why was that never a question?_

"Who is that child sitting over there? Another experiment?" asked a scientist. Two scientists were walking down the hallway with clipboards in their hands. The young scientist who had asked stopped and frowned at the unresponsive child leaning against a wall.

The child was staring down at his feet with a blank look on his face. The young scientist grimaced at the stitches on the child's body. Faint dissection lines could be seen on his body as he wore nothing but a t-shirt and shorts.

"Oh, him? He's another Subject in the Nasod-Human Experimentation. It's best not to get involved with Experiments like him," answered the older scientist.

The child slowly raised his head as he stared at the young scientist. His dead blue eyes looked directly at the young scientist's, not dropping the gaze.

"Just ignore him. Come on, I'll take you to your administrator so that you can start working," said the older scientist, tapping his junior's shoulder. The young scientist managed to rip his gaze away from the child's stare, but the glazed expression remained in his head.

"This world is meaningless, don't you agree?" were the seven words that came out of the child's mouth. The young scientist looked back, puzzled at the question. The child was already gone, leaving him with the unnerving question.

The young scientist went by the name, Karl Regios, and he soon became the Caretaker of the Experiment Subject he saw in the hallway. A Caretaker in this laboratory had the job of administering daily care and medicine. They were also given a separate job to work on other human subjects as Support Surgeon or Report Writers. It was an easy job for any newcomers, or so Karl hoped.

His first day consisted of replacing the child's painkiller IV drip package, bringing food trays, changing his bandages and giving social therapy. Karl had asked the Administrators if the Subject needed any educational lessons, but they shook their heads and concluded the matter with the statement, "He is already receiving education by experimental methods."

The young scientist pulled along a tray filled with necessary equipments to the room he was designated to. He had left it outside and picked up the two IV drip bags. Karl entered the Subject's room, briefling checking the code plate on the door.

**"Subject-1020, Nasod-Human Experiment Number 2."**

The room he had entered was small and enclosed. There were no windows to let in natural light, just the cold white light on the high ceiling. A rack bed was attached to the wall with a white mattress and neatly made bedsheet, next to it was a pull out table with a food tray on it. The food was left untouched. By the pull out table was a white chair.

Subject-1020 wasn't on the bed, but instead, he was sitting in a corner curled up in a ball. He was resting his head against the wall, staring at the ceiling with soulless eyes. What was attached to his arm was an IV drip, pumping painkillers and clear liquids in. The packages were nearly empty so it was time for Karl to replace it.

"Hi, I'm Karl Regios, your new Caretaker," stated Karl. The Subject didn't respond.

"Um, I'm going to change your IV drip bags now, ok?"

The subject didn't respond.

Karl went over the IV stand and detached the two packages from the rack. He swiftly replaced the bags and the tubes. Next, was the food tray on the pull out table. He went out to fetch the new food tray with package food and changed the old tray with the new one.

The Subject stayed unresponsive as Karl replaced his bandages, although he did move to allow Karl to change his bandages easier. Karl assumed that he was used to these daily methods and according to the scars on his skin, he had been a Subject for a long time.

"We are going to begin social therapy now, is that alright?" asked Karl, sitting himself down on the chair. The Subject remained unresponsive. Karl just sighed and brought out his clipboard, containing questions and empty boxes. He clicked his pen and began to ask questions.

The Subject did not respond to any of the questions and remained silent. Karl was beginning to get sick of the unresponsive nature of the Subject and put down the clipboard.

"Subject-1020, I won't be able to help you if you don't answer the questions," said Karl.

The Subject looked at Karl, which indicated as a reaction.

"You didn't answer my question," replied the Subject.

"Oh, that…" said Karl. "Um, I'm not completely sure what was meant by that question…"

"Then I'm not inclined to answer your questions." The Subject went back to staring at the ceiling, ignoring any further interactions.

Karl had went to the cafeteria to grab his brunch and one of his friends had asked him what was wrong. He told them about the first job he got.

"Subject-1020, huh? He did ask you 'that' question, right?" asked his friend.

"That's the one he always ask! Whenever someone is appointed as his Caretaker, he'll always ask that question. It gets on people's nerves so he frequently gets Caretaker replacements," explained another.

"He'll only ask it twice. If you want to understand it, you should probably oversee his Experimentation Sessions. As a caretaker, you can watch over both his physical and mental state," suggested another.

"That might be a good idea," replied Karl.

**A/N: ^^...Hello! Thank you for reading le first chapter! Please, review/follow/favourite, if you liked this chapter/story so far.**

**(Note for No Turning back: If you've read my first work, it's still currently on hiatus until I've gained interest on working on it again...sorry. 0-0 The update rate on this fanfiction will be one-two weeks daily, though owo~)**


	2. Cruel Normalcy

**WARNING (Please read): This following chapter will contain gore. For those who cannot stand gore well, prepare for the scene that will unfold later. Other than that, pwease enjoy~!**

Subject-1020 was in the same spot as he always was in, the corner. He was no longer looking at the ceiling, but had his head buried in his arms.

"I'm really…getting tired of this," he muttered. He raised his head a little and observed his right arm. Whenever he made a movement with that arm, it made a robotic noise. Whenever he made a sweep with his right hand, traces of holographic particles followed. The Nasod-Human Experimentation Project. The aim was to fuse the human body with Nasod implants. The overall purpose? To make two ultimate weapons for the ongoing war.

The Experimentation Project consisted of two Subjects who were related by blood. Both were raised up differently and both had different talents. One had parental care, one didn't. One was given a name, one wasn't. They were both brothers, one older and one younger.

Subject-1020 was the younger one and he had only seen his older sibling once or twice every occasion. They had never talked to each other or officially met each other, but they were both facing the same experiments. From what he knew, the Nasod-Human Experiment was successfully working on the older one. If one had to say, Subject-1020 was a failure in certain levels.

The only Nasod part he had was his right arm. Any other parts of his body would reject it due to his capacity for magic, not Nasod Synchronisation. The one reason he wasn't discarded was because of his right arm. He was able to eject Mana through it and use other Nasod equipments with it, although not as effectively. However, his capacity for Nasod Synchronisation had been increasing over the past few experiments.

Subject-1020 swiped the air a few times before spotting an unfamiliar symbol.

"Analyse: Symbol, Origin: Unknown, Begin: Diagnosis," commanded Subject-1020. His right arm made whirring sounds before seizing the fading symbol. His right arm didn't have any fake skin grafted onto it, so you could spot the mechanic parts on it.

"Diagnosis process has begun, now analysing 'unknown symbol'. Analysation complete, now clearing Safety Protocols. Safety has detected no danger in the symbol and is scanning for its purpose. Its purpose has been left undefined due to too many unknown variables. System will save symbol in storage. Status: Cannot be deleted."

"Subject-1020, Nasod-Human Experimentation Number 2, exit your room and follow your designated Scientist's orders," announced an emotionless voice. He looked up at the announcement box and gazed at the door, trembling at the familiar voice that called out.

"Subject-1020! It's time to go play again!" called out a mocking voice. He started to hyperventilate, but held in his rushed breaths. He hauled himself off the ground and walked towards the door where the Doctor was waiting.

The familiar dark room's door opened agape as Subject-1020 was pushed inside. The Experimentation Table awaited him and the daily torture was about to begin once again.

The Experimentation Session started off with a scan, which was mandatory for all Subjects.

"Hoh hoh…Subject-1020, it seems I'll be able to attach new things to you. I don't know what changes your body as undergone, but this is such an unexpected development," mused the Doctor. "Aren't you glad? Let's start the Experimentation! The faster, the better."

Just as the Doctor was reaching for a scalpel, the door on the Observation Room had opened to reveal Karl. He closed the door behind him and went to sit by the shaded window. In an instant, Karl didn't like what he was seeing. The Subject that he was taking care of was strapped to a table with a Scientist marking dissection lines on him. Instead of seeing the indifferent expression on Subject 1020's face, it was replaced by an expression of utter horror. His hands and feet continuously wrestled against their restraints. The Scientist didn't seem to be paying attention to that.

"We'll see if we can replace the heart with the Nasod replacement today. Don't worry, I have brought along my trusty Stasis today, so you won't be fainting at all!" said the Doctor in a sing-song voice. He flipped the switch under the table, causing a white light to glow around Subject-1020.

Karl knew what horrific things went on in this Laboratory, but he still signed up for it nonetheless. This Laboratory gave a ridiculous amount of income to its Scientists and other benefits. It would've been easy to write Karl off as just another monster who'd hurt others just for money, but he had reasons. He had his little sister waiting for him at home, sick and feeble. An incurable disease had struck her unable to move. The only treatment to prolong her life was to undergo expensive treatment procedures.

Holding his precious sister in mind, he chose to sign up for a job that required Scientific and Mathematic Degrees. He was prepared for what awaited him in the Laboratory, yet…now he knew that that was a lie.

Screams of agony richochetted off the walls, becoming stronger with each echo. Blood soon replaced the plainness of the table's surface, spilling down to the ground in ridiculous amounts. The restraints were somehow holding against the immense struggling Subject-1020 was giving. His chest had been opened up and his beating heart was being torned out.

Karl looked away at the gory scene in front of him. He couldn't hold in the vomit and puked all over the floor. Dizziness overwhelmed his mind as he fainted. When he came to, the screaming had stopped but was replaced with an insistent whimpering. He willed himself to look out the window again, wiping the vomit off his face with his sleeve.

"Now that wasn't too bad, right? All those things I've teached you have kept you conscious as well! You were able to answer each questions correctly," complimented the Doctor. "However, this Session hasn't ended yet. It's a miracle that your heart didn't give out and the new Nasod replacement has successfully synched. You weren't able to do this before, I wonder what's changed? Oh well, that doesn't matter, right? I'll take this chance to attach as many Nasod parts as I can to you. The Administrators won't need to know, right? You can keep it a secret, right?"

The Doctor, Karl noticed, was slightly off. He peered at the Doctor's face and recognised it. The Doctor, real name is Johnson Smile, was assigned to be a Scientist in the Laboratory since the beginning of its creation. He was known for his mental instability and merciless experimentation methods, which mostly turned out to be successful. Karl felt like puking again, seeing an insane man experiment on a child that would be the same age as his younger sister, who was much younger still.

The Doctor traced his finger around Subject-1020's left eye.

"You know what I always wanted to do? I always wanted to experiment with the eye organs, but the Administrators never had let me. They said it was too dangerous for a man of my caliber. Hear that? They said I was too unstable for such surgery! Foolish, foolish, foolish! I will prove to them how great I am and you will be my proof, yes? You agree, I'm glad," sang the Doctor. "Then, let's begin the next experimentation!"

The Doctor leaned down to Subject-1020's face, grabbing a smaller scalpel from the table next to him. In an instant move, he stabbed the scalpel into the edge of the child's eye. The screaming had started up again. A deafening howl of pain. The Doctor's fingers became slippery with the eye, which was out of its socket. The small optic nerves tugged at its insides, disallowing the eye from fully becoming detached.

"Tch, such a troublesome thing~" The Doctor tightened his grip and yanked the eye out of its place completely. Subject-1020 let out an unforgettable scream. The scene of watching someone's eyeball being pulled out burnt itself into Karl's mind.

A robotic eye was immediately pressed into the empty socket, attaching itself to the severed optic nerves.

"Ah, you see? It ended quite nicely, did it not? Hahaha…the Session has finished! It's quite sad that it ended so fast, no? Don't worry, next time will be much longer," said the Doctor. Subject-1020 was still yelling in pain and it continued to echo until Karl left the room.

**A/N: Thank you so much for reading le second chapter! Please favourite/follow/review, it'll help a lot!**

**(Response to previous reviews, also thanks for follow~)**

**tricksterflame: I'm glad that you like my fanfiction! 0^0 I hope you'll continue to read Half-Assed Reality, more chapters comin' out!**

**SuzukaMizuchi: :3 AddxEve~? Uhuhuhuhu...indeed. What are they without each other? 0^0**

**PCheshire &amp; hyunkel1234 - Thanks for following, hope you'll like this fanfiction :)**


	3. The Answer You Seek

Karl arrived at Subject-1020's room with a tray filled with the same things from yesterday; new IV drip bags, new bandages, new tray of food and new clipboards.

He entered the room to see Subject-1020 lying against the wall like a broken doll. He was looking down with one eyepatched eye and one emotionless one. Karl didn't say anything this time and replaced the child's IV drip bags, bandages and food tray.

He asked the questions that were printed out on the paper and never gained a single response for each of them. Instead of leaving the room, he pulled the chair towards himself and sat on it.

"That question you asked earlier…about the world being meaningless," began Karl. Subject-1020 slightly raised his head. "I don't think it's meaningless."

"Why?" questioned Subject-1020.

"Because happiness exists," answered Karl shortly.

"I don't think such a thing exists. The only thing in this world is hatred and sorrow. Isn't that why you joined this Laboratory? To create new weapons for the war outside?"

"No…I joined this job for someone else's sake."

Subject-1020 frowned at the reply.

"I have a little sister waiting for me at home and she is, to me, proof that happiness exists."

"Then, why aren't you with her at this moment? You're wasting your time here where adults like you don't care about the life they tamper with."

"My little sister doesn't have long to live. She suffers from a disease that can't be cured, so I came here to search for any possibilities to prolong her life. I needed the money offered here to pay for the temporary treatments for her. It's true that the people that work here don't show a shred of care for the lives they experiment with every day. I knew that…I came prepared, or at least I thought I had."

Subject-1020 remained silent.

"I didn't know that children your age were being experimented on. When I saw your Experimentation Session today, I…couldn't bare the sight in front of me. You're a couple years younger than my sister, yet you're faced with an unfair life with no escape. I understand how hopeless this world can be."

"If you can't even deal with one Session, then your career as a Scientist and a Caretaker will be over in a blink. Even if you saw my Session, you still don't understand how hopeless this world really is. You don't understand anything."

"Maybe I don't understand a thing at all because I was raised with love. My sister and I used to be taken care of parents who'd do anything for their children, but the war…took them away. I was left behind to care for my sister with almost no chance of survival."

Subject-1020 was silent again.

"But this Laboratory offered choices that this world couldn't provide. A chance for me to protect what my parents couldn't. Even if this world crumbles, I will still continue to protect her until the day I die."

Just as he said that, the floor beneath him shook violently. He could hear screaming down the hallway as the light in the room started to flicker. Explosions could be heard in the distance along with orders being shouted.

Subject-1020 stood up and detached the IV drips from his arm. He ripped the eyepatch from his head and discarded it onto the floor, revealing a slightly pale version of his left eye.

"Then, run away from this war with her," he said. "I still don't understand the meaning of happiness and the meaning of this worthless world, but I'll continue living. There'd be no answers in dying after all."

"Wait, where are you going?!" asked Karl.

"Away from here, where I've always wanted," responded Subject-1020. He walked outside of the room and followed the crowd that ran in front of him. He didn't know where the exit was, so they were his best chance at escaping. _Anywhere is better than here._

**A/N: Aaaaaaand that's the end of the chapter~ I'm sorry that's really shorter than the last two chapters, but the next few chapters will be longer. Please review/favourite/follow, it'll help out a lot owo! Share this fanfic, too!**

**Replies to le reviews~ *^***

**FriFriFurretbell - I'm glad you like this fic! Imma try my best to keep it that way.**

**Addy - Haha, I hope it wasn't too horrifying, but thank you. Yeah, I'd be using Conqueror or Pulse Cannon owo~oo**

**Special Thanks to the new followers~**

**MultiLevelsofMusic, Kamichi77, Kaito Hiroyuki and FriFriFurretbell~!**


	4. The Outside Reality

When Subject-1020 had reached the outside, he imagined it to be different in a way it was better. What awaited him outside, though, was fire and destruction. His eyes were widened at the world that stretched out before him. People were getting killed, blood painted the ground in a crimson red, death raged the surroundings like a conqueror and the sound of children screaming were ringing in his ears.

He walked aimlessly, ignoring the corpses that laid near his feet. He was used to the sight of corpses, but these ones had died brutally. Heads were split open, eyes were gouged out, guts were spilling out, bones were poking out and expressions of terror were forever engraved on them.

A familiar scream reached his ears and he snapped his attention to the owner of the scream. A white-haired woman. He immediately recognised who it was. It was his mother. He never talked with her, met her, or even went near her. Unlike his older brother, he was raised without parental love. He didn't feel angry, or maybe he used to be.

Right now, all he could do was stand there while watching the woman he knew as 'mother' get chopped down by the big man ahead of her. His 'father' was also dealt with the same fate.

The boy that was behind the two was crying in complete despair. He recognised him also, Subject-1010, Nasod-Human Experiment Number 1.

Subject-1020 couldn't comprehend the gaping hole he felt in his chest. Emotions of anguish, sorrow and regret twisted his already unstable mind further. The emotionless façade that protected his fragile mind unravelled itself. As if to mock him, a long forgotten and unbelievably naïve memory flashed itself.

_"They keep on saying that mummy and daddy don't love me…I don't believe them! When I escape, I'm going to go back to my parents and they're going to tell me it's alright!"_

How long had that foolish dream been forgotten for? Two years? Four years? Maybe more than that?

"No, no, no," he whimpered, covering his face. "I never met them…why would I think that? Why?"

"Huh? A child?"

Subject-1020 looked up to see a man carrying an axe.

"The leader said to grab any child who seems fit enough. You look like I could snap you in half with my bare hands…hmph. Oh well, like it fucking matters."

The child was whacked in the head, rendering him to the darkness.

When Subject-1020 had woken up, he found himself in a dirty and mouldy cage. His white clothes were torn and filthy. There was a sort of numb feeling within his mind as if yesterday faded away way too quickly.

He wasn't alone in the cage as a boy sat in the corner opposite to him. It was Subject-1010. He was awake, but looked unresponsive.

This was the first time that Subject-1020 was less than a metre away from his older sibling. He wasn't certain of what to feel. Anger? Jealousy? Sadness? Empathy? Anything at all?

"Hello," greeted Subject-1020. His brother looked up to meet the eyes of his younger brother.

"You're finally awake?" he asked.

"How long have I been out for? Where are we?" responded Subject-1020.

"Just…just three days, I think. We're in a Slave Trader Camp, I don't know where exactly."

"What's your name?"

"Add. What's yours?"

"I don't have a name. Unlike you, I was given no name."

"Then, I'll give you a name."

Subject-1020 frowned. A name?

"Since you're my younger brother and was raised up differently than me. I'll call you, Subtract, the opposite of my name."

"Subtract…doesn't sound too bad. Anyways, do you intend to stay here?"

"No, I'm not going to stay here. I'm finally outside, but…mum isn't here."

The word was foreign to Subtract. To have a mother, what was it like? If he was going to start asking questions, he might as well do it now.

"What is it like? To have a mother? Was it nice? Was it warm? Was her hugs warm? Did she ever call you sweety? Little baby? Did she ever feed you? Take care of you? Be there for you?"

Add didn't answer the questions, remaining quiet. Instead, he stood up with a resolved look on his face.

"I'm going to get out of here anyway. Do you want to escape with me?" he asked, reaching out his hand to Subtract. Subtract's eyes widened at the outreached hand and slowly took his hand.

"There isn't any point in being here anyway," answered Subtract. "I'll go with you."

"I've already devised a plan while you were knocked out. The guards here occasionally open the cage door to replaced the feed and drink bowls. We can take that opportunity to escape," he explained. "Have you went through the Combat Experiments?"

"Not really, they said I wasn't qualified for it…"

"Then, just follow my lead. We have to get out of here."

The shrill of the bell alarm rang throughout the grounds. Guards were rushing about and orders were being yelled out. It was a moonless night which was a perfect time to escape. Orange light glowed over the grounds as two figures escaped the camp.

They effortlessly climbed over the barbwire, using the clothes of the guard they knocked out to grip the wire. Subtract followed Add closely as he had told him to.

"Add, they're carrying guns!" warned Subtract. He could feel his lungs about to give out, but his new heart allowed him to endure the breathlessness.

"They won't shoot unless they're ordered to! Just run as fast as you can!" responded Add.

"Stop, you brats! We'll fucking shoot you dead if you don't!" yelled the guards.

"Into the forest!" instructed Add. They both fled into the forest and could barely see the trees in front of them. The light coming from the torch-carrying guards behind them only allowed them limited visibility. There was no end to the forest path ahead of them and they couldn't see the ground completely at all.

"Wah!" yelped Subtract, his foot caught by a thorny branch. Its thorns had neatly lodged itself into the flesh of his leg, bleeding his flesh heavily. He looked behind him to see the guards dangerously catching up with smirks on their faces. He turned his head forward to see Add running away. He wasn't even looking back to check, he was running as if he didn't hear the screams of his younger brother.

"Wait! Don't leave me!" Subtract called out with his right arm outstretched. Tears were blurring his vision until he could only see darkness and the sound of laughter rang inside his ears.

"We've got the younger brother! You guys chase after the other one!" roared out one of the guards. The guard's face was covered, except his eyes. He glared hatefully at Subtract. "You snivelling little brat, did you think you could escape? Haha, no fucking matter, we'll teach you what we do to naughty kids like you."

**A/N: And that ends Chapter 4! If you liked it, please review/favourite/follow! Share this fanfic if you want~!**

**Replying to a review time~!  
**

**Guest: Huhu...after reading this, are you so sure they should meet again? Wellies, read on, chap/madam. Life's full of emotional rollercoasters!**

**Gratification for the newest follower/s:**

**whitemist0**

**You guys all rock~! :3**


	5. What's Been Done

Subtract was taken back to the slave camp where he was brutally tortured as punishment. His legs were crippled and numerous scars replaced the older ones.

Five days had passed and the tortures intensified with each day. His legs' bones were entirely broken and shattered. He was subjected to psychological tortures and was driven slowly to insanity. He only had a small grip on rationality due to the Nasod components in his head.

He was left in the corner of the torture room, rambling about numbers and DNA sequences. He picked at the scabs that formed on his arms, letting it bleed slightly. A morbid entertainment to keep the brain functioning. Occasional sparks flew out of his right arm, wires poking out like spikes.

"Sensitive repair…needed…required? Necessary? Adenine…nine thousand and nine hundred and fifty-six…torture? Torture? Meaning? Definition? Question…betrayal? Traitor? Who's the traitor? Hahaha…is it me? No, is it me? I don't remember anymore, I'm tired…I'm tired…I'm tired…" he rambled. "I don't want this…can't escape…anymore?"

The sound of a cage door creaking opening could be heard, two overgrown men entered the room. They carried chains in their hands and unpleasant grinning on their faces. It was as if those grins were stuck to their faces like a clown's mask.

"No, no, no, no, no, NO!" screamed Subtract. "I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to!"

The torturers only smiled in response, fingers itching for the feel of blood and agony. The sixth day of torture.

They stepped closer with their clangy boots, giggling in delight of their shivering victim. Just as they took one more step towards Subtract, he immediately screamed louder and covered his eyes.

He felt his voice cut short along with the clank of the torturers' boots. Music could be heard ringing around him and when he looked, he was sitting on a transparent cube with glowing blue markings on it. There were floating dark cubes everywhere, gradually opening to reveal dark light. A dark moon could be seen in the distance.

"Hoh…I've never met someone who could access Henir without the help of a Gate. Who are you, may I ask?" asked someone.

Subtract raised his head to see a masked person in front of him, wearing a black coat. Golden triangular locks were attached to the chains around the person's neck like a necklace. He could spot one yellow eye through one of the mask's eye holes, the other remained empty and dark.

"Who am…I? Question…answer…am I supposed to answer? I don't understand, haha…" mumbled Subtract.

"It looks like you've lost your mind, child. Oh well, that doesn't matter, I'm interested in your ability to warp to Henir's Time and Space. So I'll welcome and raise you," said the person. "I go by the name, Glaive. Keke, I hope you are prepared."

***8 years later***

"How is your battle and mental condition today?" asked Glaive. An older Subtract exited a Time Gate, pausing to see Glaive sitting in a chair.

"They're fine. Can you stop asking that question? It's getting…annoying," responded Subtract.

"What? Keke, I think it's fair of me to worry since I am your guardian. As a guardian, I am responsible for your health and mental well-being. You have been under my custody for the past few years in mental rehab, training and growth care," said Glaive, chuckling.

Subtract narrowed his eyes at Glaive and checked his Nasod Gear. Over the past eight years, or so Subtract presumed, he had built the six Nasod Operators from the worlds Glaive could access and learnt to build them from his libraries. Even the Administrator of all Time and Space has to have a pastime, yes?

Subtract eyed the Screen Glaive was watching. His 'guardian' had a habit of watching people whilst taking them into Henir's Time and Space. _Great, he's going to send in more people to play with?_

"What are you watching?" he asked.

"Hmm? Just a group of mortals that I've been interested in for a while, care to see?" responded Glaive. Subtract drew closer to the Screen and saw the group Glaive was talking about. There was a red-haired boy, a long-haired elf, a purple-clad girl, a white-haired girl and a person with a mechanical arm. They looked ordinary to Subtract, but he saw someone watching from behind the trees.

"Can you zoom in there?" Subtract pointed. Glaive double-tapped the area Subtract had pointed to, revealing another white-haired individual.

Subtract's eyes widened in shock as he recognised who it was.

"It c-can't be…" he muttered.

"Keke, do you happen to know who this individual is?" asked Glaive. Subtract smirked in response, clenching his fists tightly.

"Someone I've been waiting to meet," he replied.

"Hoh…and why is that?"

"Didn't I tell you that the reason I accepted your 'training' was to become strong enough for someone?"

"You did. So, is this person your older brother?"

"He is my older brother. I haven't seen him in so long, but I knew the time would come…the time when I kill him with my own two hands."

"Keke, so you're finally leaving Henir's Time and Space, then? Let me just notify you that this scene is a flashback that I captured, meaning that this Time isn't current. I gathered this Time one year ago so if you go right now, he might look a little different. I'll input his Map Data Trace within your database."

"That's no problem for me, nothing will stop me from my goal," said Subtract as he opened up a Time Gate.

"Before you go, though, I have only one condition."

Subtract turned his head to see Glaive standing up.

"Don't use 'that' Mode. The last time you did, you nearly died because of the limitations of your impaired Nasod heart. Since you are leaving my care, your Nasod heart's ruination time will continue with no means of maintenance. Do you understand the risk, Subtract?"

"You know better than to underestimate me, Glaive, and don't tell me what to do. I'll use 'that' mode if he appears stronger than I think, even at the cost of my own life," finished Subtract as he exited through the Gate.

"Hmph, what a troublesome kid," said Glaive.

**A/N: And that's le end of le fifth chapter~! If you liked it, please review/favourite/follow! If you can, share this fanfic, too~!**

**Replies to le reviews owo~**

**Kamichi77: :D I'm glad you love this story, thank ye very much! **

**Guest (who's Review doesn't show up for some reason :\\): That's not a horrible impression =w= I just love putting some form of gore. Aaand surprise, surprise, Subtract's still alive eue.**

**And thanks to xCyrusx for following this fanfic owo.**


	6. Hunt Intiation

The place he had arrived at was somewhat unexpected. He was in a desolate looking area with strange black metallic platforms and overgrown moss that seemed to be sentient. He could feel something buzzing underneath his feet, like a heavy engine of some sort.

"This is strange, it's different from the Screen Glaive was watching from…did he tweak my teleport area?" questioned Subtract. "Nonetheless, since that Screen's a year-old recording, this must be a more recent time period."

There was a faint beeping noise emanating from behind him, clunking noisily.

"If you're going to sneak up on me, you might as well be fucking sneaky about it," growled Subtract as he turned around. Out of the mossy piles, red lights could be spotted underneath the darkness. Subtract narrowed his eyes, seeing mechanical arms crawl out of the ground. "Are you freaking kidding me…Nasod?"

Nasod Scouts, Miners and Gardeners started to reboot their infected systems. The moss that grew on the Nasods contained a strain of spores and were buzzing slightly. Subtract recognised the spores as Alterasia Spores, which were created by the toxic plant, Alterasia.

"No matter, I'll just get rid of you trash here and now. Operator, Force Mode, activate," ordered Subtract. The air around him pulsated at a small scale and dark particles began to radiate from his body.

The first one to attack Subtract was a corrupt Nasod Miner, jabbing its drill forth. Subtract only remained still and saw the Miner in the corner of his eye.

"Force Command – Motion Blocker."

In a blink, a shield of hexagonal black and blue appeared to the side of Subtract. The drill had completely stopped in motion and its drilling silenced.

"Motion Blocker, repulse."

With a single command, the Nasod Miner was violently pushed backwards by the shield's external force. It smashed into the wall of a rock, shattering into pieces. That seemed to set off the other corrupted Nasods into motion as they attacked at once.

"Diverse Force Command – Dome Motion Blocker, setting: Repulsation."

Subtract's shield extended around him in a dome shape. The corrupted Nasods all clashed into the shield and met the same fate as the first attacker.

"What a useless distraction," commented Subtract as he retracted the shield. "Operator, pull up the Screen Map and input the Map Data Trace Glaive gave me."

One of his Operators obeyed and opened up, projecting a holographic map. The name Graveyard of Purification was tagged over the place Subtract was in. He pinched the map, zooming further out to see that he was on a floating island with the given name, 'Altera'. Nearby was a village located in an underground mine, simply named, 'Altera Village'. There were faint traces leading into it, labelled, 'Add's trail'. Subtract traced the trail, seeing that it went off the map entirely.

"I'm going to have to secure an air transport…first, I'll find this village and dig for information," said Subtract. He continued walking, following the overgrown pathways that lead to the black platforms. He effortlessly jumped over them with the help of his Operators.

Facing the entrance of the village, he walked inside to hear clanking and hissing sounds. He recognised them as machinery sounds. Creatures who were smaller than his height were hurrying around, carrying pickaxes and wearing miner's helmet. Massive cogs were rotating in the distance with the occasional appearance of a dead Engineer.

He went up to one of the strange bipedal creatures who looked old.

"Hello, do you recognise this person?" asked Subtract, as he had one of his Operators pull up a picture of Add.

The creature reacted a little slow towards the question and looked at him before answering, "Hmm? I don't think I recognise this person, but I might know who can help you pong. What is your name by the way pong? You are new to this village, are you not pong?"

"I'm Subtract, this person's younger brother. I'm looking for him," he answered.

"I see, that is quite a situation you are in pong. I am Adel, the Chief of Altera Village, and I will do my best to help you find your brother pong," said Adel.

"I'm just looking for a means of transport to go to a place called, 'Feita'. I've…heard rumours that he might be there. Do you have any airships that I could borrow?" requested Subtract.

"An a-airship pong? Us Ponggos don't have any airships in our possession, but I do know of a certain group that uses an airship pong. The captain of the airship has long left it so its crew still remains there, maintaining the airship pong. However, I don't think it would be wise to try to use that airship, the crew there is still hostile to outsiders pong," answered Adel.

"That's no problem, I have my own means of protecting myself. Can you point me in the direction of this airship?" pressed Subtract.

"Very well, Subtract, but do watch out for your own safety pong."

Adel gave Subtract a map of where to go, telling him once again to take care. Subtract set out to find the airship, which honestly wasn't very far.

An airship laid near a forest where Black Crow fighers could be seen roaming about.

"Operator, Force Mode, activate," commanded Subtract. "Force Command – Gravity Denial."

Subtract began to float with a slightly visible force-field beneath his feet. He quickly dashed to the top floor of the airship, scanning it with his Operators to find the command room. Before he could spot it, a bullet was fired at him but missed. Narrowing his eyes, he spotted Black Crow Snipers and Bellows Machine Guns aiming at him.

"Force Command – Motion Blocker!"

With the shield up, he blocked all of the bullets and descended slowly onto the airship's floor. He was surrounded by Black Crow members in an instant.

"A battle situation can't be avoided, huh? Oh well, that doesn't matter," said Subtract.

"Get off this ship, you outsider, or we'll attack!" said one of the crew members.

"No can fucking do. It looks like I have no choice but to eliminate you all since I could just have my Operators hack the central controls. Operator, Weaponised Form, activate!" responded Subtract. His clothes were instantly replaced with a black coat with blue outlines. Bands of holographic numbers floated around him, repeating the numbers, 0 and 1, endlessly.

Subtract held out his right hand and commanded, "Weapon Command – Negation Blade."

The bands of holographic numbers started to combine into one, forming into dark blade. The crew could feel its intense aura radiating in a profuse manner. In preparation for the fight, Subtract summoned a metallic glove on his right hand.

"I'll eradicate you fools so come on and attack, you little shits."

**A/N: And that's le end to another chapter owo! Please review/favourite/follow/share, it'll be much appreciated!**

**And thanks to Arashi Gin and MKDynaBlade for adding this fanfic to his/her follow~!**

**Replies to the reviews =w=~**

**MKDynaBlade: My dear reader, your question will be answered in due time. owo b**

**Syra: He's very durable. Some people just refuse to die, the essence of survival =w= b**

**Kaito Hiroyuki: I'm happy you like this fanfic *^* b And let's just say...Subtract has a lot of toys to use at his command. LuCiel, hmmm, who knows...(input cliché: even I don't know)...eue**


	7. Beacon of Dread

**Warnin': This following chapter will contain gore.**

First one to attack was a Black Crow Gladiator who swung his big sword heavily at Subtract. He parried the attack forcefully strong to his right and sliced through the gladiator while his step was off. Blood sprayed all over the grey floor, some spilling on the crew members.

Like an alarm setting off, other gladiators charged at Subtract. Using the metallic glove, he grabbed the blades of the oncoming gladiators and stabbed at the flesh underneath the blue fabric. One would strike at him from behind, which he ducked and spun around. His sword met the flesh of an engineer, or the bullet from a sniper.

He didn't stay on self-defence as he dashed through the corpses of his foes, swinging at the snipers who continuously rained bullets on him. He instinctively dodged through the gaps of the oncoming bullets and sliced at the snipers' throats. It only took one simple sword motion at the neck, for there to be a shower of carnage.

When he single-handingly took down all the snipers, the gladiators who had caught up continued their swinging barrage. An engineer had tried to trip him, but he stomped at the measly figure and pierced his sword into its head. The crack of its skull could be heard. His sword never seemed to get stuck in flesh as the blade itself rejected all matter.

Another gladiator came charging in so Subtract lowered himself a little, forcing the hilt of his sword into the gladiator's stomach. He grabbed the head of the dazed gladiator and threw him into the crowd of attackers. Without a single break, a Black Crow Commander came lunging his sword down at him. Dodging the initial attack, Subtract sliced at the commander who quickly blocked it with his blade. Clicking his tongue in disappointment, Subtract whirled behind the commander and cleaved him in half.

The battle of gore reigned on with innards pooling itself onto the floor. Subtract was completely covered in blood and was almost unrecognisable under all the guts and blood on him. Most of the crew had been taken down, but the machine guns were starting to cause him trouble.

A few surviving engineers took over the bellow machine guns, aiming it at their single enemy. Since the barrels could only aim up and down, dodging them was way too easy. He stabbed into the gaps of the turrets, causing them to malfunction and explode. The explosion of the turrets took down the remaining engineers in a flash.

Aside from the oncoming gladiators, the Nasod Healers were becoming an annoyance. As they kept healing the near-dead crew members, it gave Subtract more work to deal with. He took some of them down since the others were already starting to flee from the scene of the gore. Soon all crew members had been met with a grisly death, leaving only a few healers to be floating away.

"Oi, don't you be running away from me," said Subtract as he sliced them down. Leaving one alive, he grabbed it and smashed it into the wall. It still functioned, but couldn't move. "Interesting properties, you'll serve me well."

He took some parts from the healer and implanted them into one of his Operators. Subtract didn't finish the battle without a few injuries on his flesh. Stray bullets had nicked him, blades had met his flesh when he wasn't paying attention and bruises appeared from the frenetic charges of the gladiators.

After adding healing properties to one of his Operators, he had it heal his battle wounds as he searched for the airship's control center. His left eye, which was paler still, made a small beeping noise. He looked around with his left eye that had detected the central control he was looking for.

The control central room was a mess of controls all over the place with resting chairs in the corners and leftover cigarette butts left smoking. It was as if they were waiting for their upholder, who would never return in its short life time.

Getting to work immediately, Subtract had his Operators hack the controls and installed the directions to Feita. The airship controls whirred as they began to switch on, making the airship shift as it rose up from the ground.

"These bloodstains are beginning to get a little bothersome. Operator, clean it up," ordered Subtract. The Operator with the healing properties flied towards Subtract, summoning a circling device that cleaned his clothes. It went back to work when it finished.

Subtract gave one look outside and then suddenly felt a pang of pain inside his chest. He hissed at the sensation and sat down on one of the resting chairs, sweating slightly. With one hand, he grasped onto his chest where his heart was.

"Already deteriorating from that one fight? I have to hurry, then, I'm not going to…last much longer," muttered Subtract.

"Airship has arrived at destination: Feita," announced the airship. Subtract stood up from the chair and pulled out his Screen Map. The Data Trace led to somewhere far in Feita, but it was still moving.

"The distance seems convenient enough, maybe I should start up a little beacon as early greetings," pondered Subtract, grinning. "Operator, set off the Ignition System and cease control."

The Operators beeped in recognition, setting off an alarm. Subtract hastily exited the airship and made a considerable amount of distance between the airship and him.

In an instant, the overheating cores of the airship began to ignite and burn. The airship exploded fiercely strong as Subtract continued through the forest with his back to the explosion.

"I'm coming for you, brother," he said in a sing-song voice.

Somewhere in the distance, a white-haired teenager felt a shiver run down his back. He temporarily stopped walking alongside another white-haired girl.

"What is it, Add?" she asked. The Elparty had stopped, staring back at the white-haired individual.

"Keh, nothing."

**A/N: Another end to the chapter~! Please, review/favourite/follow/share~! **

**I'd like to thank FumeKnight for adding this fanfic to his/her follow! ouo b**

**Replies to le reviews owo~**

**SuzukaMizuchi: Nup~! There will be romance later on-but I'll leave it at that =w=. By the way the last sentence made me laugh (finally Add has a stalker XD). *Pulls out a fake beard and strokes it mysteriously* "Alas, the stalker must be stalked."-/shot.**

**FriFriFurretbell: Thank you for your kind words~!**


	8. To Remain Alive

Subtract made his way through the dark forest to encounter a camp site. Spotting the nearest soldier, he went to talk to him.

"Hey…" started Subtract, but he was met with a sword's point inches to his face. The soldier had turned around and unsheathed his sword instinctively at the intruder. "That's quite rude to do, don't you think?"

"Soldier, put down your sword. I don't think this person is an enemy," commanded someone. Subtract saw a knight walking towards the soldier and him.

"Sorry, Sir Lento," apologised the soldier as he lowered his sword, sheathing it. The knight named, Lento, approached Subtract.

"I apologise for my soldier's rude actions. I'm Lento, who are you?" asked Lento.

"I'm Subtract," he answered.

"What brings you here to Feita? It's not really safe here because of the Demon Invasion."

"Demon Invasion? I see. I can take care of myself pretty well, so you don't have to worry. Do you know this person?"

Subtract pulled up a picture of Add, which Lento seemed to recognise.

"That's…Add. Why are you looking for this person?"

"He's my older brother that I had been separated from. I'm trying to find him and I last heard that he came here to Feita. Do you know where he might've gone?"

"I'm not completely sure since the last time we saw him was a while ago, but he might be heading for Velder. He was following Elsword and the others for some reason."

"Elsword?"

"He's an exceptionally skilled swordsman who saved Feita from being overtaken by Demons with his friends. I believe your brother was watching over them."

"At least, he's alive and well. So, is Velder where he might be? Where can I catch a ride there?"

"A ride? All the roads have been blocked so the only way to get there is by foot. Even the way there is quite dangerous as there are remnants of the demons around. As of right now, the shortest route is blocked by a Demon General."

"I'll take the short route, where is it?"

"It's really dangerous! There are other safer routes that you can take."

"I don't have enough time for 'another' route. Please, I need a means of hurrying."

Lento sighed and pointed, "If you take the east road, you'll meet a fork in the road. Take the left road and enter Dead Man's Hill through Pilgrim's site. I warn you, though, it is quite dangerous and glitter demons frequent it. We can spare some food and water for your journey, if you want."

"I'll accept the offer then."

Lento nodded and walked away to organise supplies for the new visitor. Subtract looked around for a moment and spotted a small camp where a family was sitting outside. He first saw a small child clinging to its mother as she cuddled her child lovingly. The child's father sat beside his wife, smiling at the child who giggled.

Subtract felt a painful ache within his heart as he watched. He narrowed his eyes in response and looked at his chest.

"What…is this feeling? I don't recognise it, but it really hurts. Is it because…" said Subtract, raising his head. He watched the happy family once more and then shook his head. "No, my Nasod heart is breaking down physically along with my health. That must be what the pain is."

Subtract waited near the end of the camp site, sending his Operators to scan the 'Site' Lento mentioned. He had one Operator to perform medical scans on his Nasod heart. The Operator had opened up to reveal smaller parts where each parts were engineered for medical purposes. The new healing properties from the Healers helped upgrade it. Each of his Operators had different purposes, but had similar ones to change his "Modes".

"Scan: Complete, Result: Nasod heart is undergoing high stress while gradually overheating, Current status: Deteriorating and will not last longer than two weeks, Recommendation: No maintenance or repair available, cannot repair severe state."

"Less than two weeks, huh…I don't think I can make it back to Henir in time. No matter, I can just perform Occasional Stasis. Operator, check out the reliability of Occasional Stasis."

"Reliability of Occasional Stasis, checked. Result: Is not a reliable option. Will only prolong life only by one day. Consequences: Increases chance of heart attack and ceased functionality of heart. Chances of death will be increased. Do you wish to use Occasional Stasis?"

Subtract paused for a moment before replying, "Activate it immediately."

"Command confirmed."

Blue light temporarily flickered within Subtract's chest before fading. He turned around when he heard footsteps.

"Subtract, here's your supplies. They'll only last you three days, but it should be more than enough for your journey," said Lento as he handed Subtract a backpack. "Be careful out there. The Demon General isn't the smartest, but he is highly destructive."

"I understand. I'm leaving now," responded Subtract emotionlessly.

Entering the Pilgrim's Site, Subtract could instantly spot a tall building to his left. It towered ominously high with an aura of danger. His Operators returned with multiple scans of enemies ahead, all of them hostile and many in numbers.

"Activate, Weaponised Mode," commanded Subtract. His clothes were replaced by a black coat and he set out on the Site's path. He encountered the demons sooner than expected who carried spears, bows, shields and battle hammers.

"Weapon Command: Hyper Artillery."

A gun with multiple barrels formed in the air with the holographic numbers coding its creation. Subtract's fingers wrapped around it as it physically formed, prepped for battle. The glitter demons spotted him and started charging at him whilst the archers stayed behind on platforms.

Subtract aimed at them first and shot them down. He quickly materialised his metallic glove on his right hand again. The glitter demons surrounded him, baring their fangs. He sighed, gripping his gun and closed his eyes. When the first of the demons attacked, his eyes flicked open and he shot at the nearest demons.

A spear was aimed at him, but he jumped up with the attacker in sight. He shot the spear man and landed on him. Taking note of the two spear men coming from behind, supported by defenders, he blinked behind the defenders and shot them down. The two spear men were confused, searching for Subtract who placed the barrel of his gun on them.

"Say hello to death for me, will you?" whispered Subtract as he shot both of them instantly.

"Increase barrel numbers to five, change settings to homing."

Five barrels formed on his gun. Subtract shot at the demons behind him, hitting five targets effectively. A defender was charging towards him, catching him slightly off guard. He blinked at the last second behind the defender, shooting a bullet through its head. The head of the defender exploded into pieces with brain matter splattering on Subtract's hair.

Throughout the battle as Subtract continued to manoeuvre his way forward. With the entrance to Dead Man's Hill in sight, he emptied a bullet from the gun and threw it at the demons. It instantly exploded, taking out most of the front side of the demon horde. The smoke from the explosion prevented them from seeing in front of them, halting their advancement. Even though, they never would go past the gate as something else awaited their lone enemy.

Subtract hopped over the black gate into the forbidding area of Dead Man's Hill. It was completely void of light and life as its pathways were littered with dead weeds and plant life. Glitter zombies walked around aimlessly who didn't seem to notice Subtract's presence. The Demon General Lento mentioned hadn't appeared yet so Subtract proceeded onwards, although cautiously.

He knew something rather big was coming and switched his Weapon to Negation Blade.

Before he could react, a strong force smacked into Subtract's back and threw him straight into a wall. A raspy growl could be heard as Subtract raised his head to meet a gigantic glitter. Subtract's left eye flickered in annoyance, observing the glitter demon.

"Heha…you won't…hehe…pass through my watch, weak mortal," it said.

"We'll see about that," said Subtract, standing up. He flashed towards the General and went straight for his heart. The General blocked his initial attack with his gigantic arm. The sword had lodged into the flesh of the demon, causing him to yell in pain. He quickly grabbed Subtract and repeatedly whacked him into a wall.

"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts! Bater is hurt!" cried the glitter.

Subtract tched, gritting his teeth in impatience as he sliced through Bater's fingers. Demonic blood splattered onto the floor as Bater's detached fingers rolled on the ground.

Bater's eyes glowed red as he let out a poisonous breath at Subtract.

"Warning: breath is considered poisonous. Please, avoid at all cost."

Subtract jumped backwards and dashed behind Bater, slashing at his behind. Bater fell to the ground, but quickly retaliated by chomping at Subtract. He wasn't able to fully dodge the retaliation as Bater's fangs tore at Subtract's clothes.

Subtract summoned small flash bangs and threw them at Bater, blinding the demon for a couple moments. He jumped above Bater's head and pierced his sword into the demon's head. Fountains of blood poured from the wound, covering Subtract in more carnage.

His healing Operator immediately began to heal Subtract, cleaning the liquid off of his clothes as it reverted back to normal.

"Some Demon General, wasn't even worth my time," commented Subtract. "How many aggressive weaklings must I tow down to get to that bastard? How annoying. Weaklings like these can't survive in this world and should be obliterated by their stupidity. If they can't even shed off their weaknesses, they won't be able to survive like me."

**A/N: Another le end to le chapter~! Thanks for reading ouo b~! Please review/favourite/follow/share if you liked this chapter~~~**

**Late thanks to APHLync13 who added this fanfic to his/her favourites! owo *bows***

**Replying to the review~**

**FriFriFurretball: I'll try to describe how his attacks, but I won't make it too descriptive =w=~. Thanks for le comment. Everybody's got to have a fear or something they don't want to see. Anyone, even the strongest ones.**

**If you readers have noticed, the chapters' names have changed a little. I hope it won't make things confusing? QAQ**

**I also noticed that we've reached over 1,000 views! :D Thank you so much! *gives 1,000+viewers cookies of any flavour***


	9. A Certain Someone

Subtract watched the lifeless corpse of Bater for a moment, checking for any movements. Suddenly, he heard a high-pitched squeak behind him. Turning around, he saw a purple-weird looking creature with an oversized seed pocket attached to its head.

Before he could react, the yellow seed pocket exploded and sent Subtract down a steep slope. He tumbled down dangerously fast as he tried to grip onto anything to stop his tumble. Eventually finding a stuck-out branch, he grabbed onto it and was inches away from the ground. He coughed, feeling bile rising in his throat.

"Warning: you have now been poisoned as a result from the previous attack. It is recommended that you rest and hydrate yourself right away."

Subtract let go off the branch, falling to the ground. His coughed turned more violent as he propped himself against a rock. His vision was blurry and his consciousness was slowly fading. The backpack Lento gave him couldn't be found anywhere so Subtract concluded that it might've been blown somewhere else.

He picked himself up and walked along the slope's bottom, hoping to find any indication of a pathway. The poison in his body started to disappear, but the need for hydration didn't go away.

"Operator, scan the area for any water source…" groaned Subtract. He started vomiting on the floor with his healing Operator behind him, exerting a healing force. When he was done, the Operator cleaned him up. "Pull up the Screen Map, I need to see where I am."

With the map up, he saw that he was pretty far from Velder and clicked his tongue in annoyance. The map didn't contain any specific detail of the area he was in so he couldn't really depend on it. As if things couldn't get any worse, he heard several growling noises near him.

"Are you shitting me? More weaklings? I don't have time for this bullcrap," spat Subtract as he started running. He knew he was in no condition to be able to run fast, but he had no choice. The poison in his body hadn't completely disappeared and the condition of his heart wasn't helping. Usually, he'd be riding on his Operator but they were off scanning the area. He hastily called them back as the growling noises got closer.

After what seemed like hours, Subtract couldn't hear the growling anymore and he stopped. The map showed that he was nearing Velder, which seemed to shed a light on his situation. The Data Trace was in Velder, too. Smiling, he continued riding his Operator and found a crossroad with sign poles.

He wasn't the only one there as there was a hooded person staring worriedly at the signs. It appeared to Subtract that she was lost.

"Just where is Velder's Village? I really have to hurry…" she groaned. Subtract looked at his Screen Map where a location point called, "Velder's Village" was. It was a little far from the Data Trace so the rational choice was, not to help the lost girl.

Closing the Screen Map, Subtract approached the girl and tapped her shoulder. She jolted and turned around to reveal two rose pink eyes. Subtract was slightly surprised at the colour of her eyes. It was a gentle and kind colour, which was the complete opposite of Subtract's cold dark blue eyes.

"Uh…are you're searching for Velder's Village?" asked Subtract.

"Yep, I'm trying to get there, but there doesn't seem to be directions on the signs…" she replied, mumbling a little. What she said was true, there wasn't any directions leading to the village on the signs.

"I know the way there so I can guide you there," said Subtract.

"Oh, no, I don't want to trouble you," responded the girl.

"It's no trouble. I'm heading there anyway, so I might as well help you," lied Subtract.

"I see, then guide me there," said the girl. "I'm Apple, you?"

"I'm Subtract," he answered. "Let's get going, then."

As they both walked together, they both remained silent without anything to talk about. Subtract, though, was mentally slapping himself for his choice. _Why am I helping this girl? It's only going to get me further away from my goal._

"So, Subtract, why are you heading to Velder?" she asked.

"I'm searching for someone, what about you?" he responded.

"Hmm~I'm searching for someone, too!" she answered. "Coincidence, huh? We're both searching for someone."

She smiled at Subtract.

"Y-yeah," he replied. "Anyways, we've arrived at the village."

Apple turned her attention to the sight in front of her, seeing the village. She then turned to Subtract and bowed politely.

"Thank you for guiding me here, Subtract."

"No worries," he replied. She smiled at him one last time before hurrying off. Subtract let out a sigh and pulled up the Screen Map again. His eyes widened considerably when he saw that the Data Trace was very close by. A wide grin spreaded out on his face like a Chelsea grin. The signal had led to a nearby town area. Whilst the signal was getting significantly further away, he recognised its pattern.

"Looks like it won't take less than a week to get to him," said Subtract. His Operators buzzed at their master's excitement, emitting small amounts of electricity.

He looked at the sky which was darkening immensely. He took one last look at the Map, seeing that it was moving onto an important-looking place.

Looking for a secure place, he pulled up his personal computer and inputted in several codes. An unmade tent was summoned and the Operators went to set it up. When it was set up, Subtract entered the tent and laid down against the bed.

The night sky looked alit with a fiery and dark aura.

"The Trace won't move too much by tomorrow," said Subtract. "Looks like I'll be able to meet him very soon…it's already been two days since I arrived here. I hadn't noticed. Hmph, no matter. Today was filled with pointless interactions and a weird girl."

Subtract sat up momentarily, frowning.

"Speaking of that girl, she didn't seem to be entirely human…some sort of electricity signal? Similar to a Nasods, if not more."

He laid down again, closing his eyes.

"Oh well, if I make it back to Henir, I might search up her Time file."

**A/N: And that's le end of le chapter~! Thank you for reading, and if you liked this chapter/fanfic so far, please review/favourite/follow/share!**

**Replying to the review owo:**

**SuzukaMizuchi: (Slightly spoiler) Subby won't be travelling much further. =w= In the next couple chapters, might his stalkin' come to an endin'~! **

**And thank you to Dragonbron356 for following this fanfic~!**


	10. Sadist's Programming

**WARNING: This chapter is long, over 1900 words! *faints***

When Subtract woke up, he tasted something metallic in his mouth. Confused, he sat up and spat whatever was in his mouth. Red. His Operator glowed slightly, letting him see the splatter of his own blood on his clothes. He felt weak with his breathing becoming impaired and irregular. He could feel his own heart slowing down.

His healing Operator reacted immediately to the sight of blood, exerting its healing force onto its master.

"Are you fucking failing me now? You can't, you can't, you can't…you can't do that," gasped Subtract angrily. "Not until I kill him, you can't. You can't fail on me now…fuck, fuck, fuck!"

His eyes started to close gradually. His healing Operator wasn't even helping.

"T-Time Mode…Activate!" commanded Subtract. The floor beneath him seemed to quake a little as turquoise glowing cracks spreaded out from beneath Subtract. His surroundings began to distort and slow down. Everything was enveloped in a sound vacuum momentarily as the space around Subtract's tent became twisted before warping back into shape. Subtract's appearance changed gradually as his hair turned white. His eyes started to turn into a bright yellow and his sclera black. A dark blue mask appeared on his face, though very faint and unstable.

* * *

"Hoh…so he's used it. How very hasty of him. Now that he's used it, he won't be able to restrain his own insanity," said Glaive as he watched Subtract from a Screen. "Keke…not that that would've made a difference. It's already too late."

* * *

"Time Command – Time Alchemy." A glowing orb of dark blue appeared before him and he grabbed it, thrusting it into his chest. It entered his chest, leaving a clock mark on it. With a turning motion in the air with his hands, he said, "Reversed Time."

The hand of the clock spun backwards, fading away as it did. Time Mode was dispersed immediately.

"Operator, Diagnosis."

"Operator has diagnosed your heart condition. Result: Reversed Time has rewinded Heart's time by one day and a half. Occasional Stasis is still in work. Reversed Time has not lessened chance of sudden heart failure."

"Huuuuuh? Is that it? Kahaha…well, as if that matters. It just means I'll have to hurry up, right, Operator?"

He laughed for a couple seconds before covering his mouth, trying to suppress it. Standing up, he left the tent which was automatically set to refold itself. The Operators stored the tent and returned to their master's side.

"Operator, pull up the Screen Map, will you?"

The Map showed the Data Trace entering a forest-like area. It wasn't far off, too. Infact, it was even closer than yesterday. The fact that Subtract's desired reunion was coming close made him giggle.

"I'm going to enjoy ripping your innards out one by one! It seems that there are other people travelling with you? No matter, I'm only aiming to kill you and you only!" sang Subtract. He hopped onto his Operators and dashed forwards. He placed one hand onto his head, hearing numerous voices chiming in. All the suppressed emotions were bursting at the seams and he couldn't control them any longer.

_"Time to kill. Time to destroy. Time to eradicate. No time to waste. Have to kill, have to kill, have to kill! Won't rest. Won't stop. Won't go back. Have fun! Enjoy it all! The pooling mess of blood and guts, have to hurry! Won't stop. Won't stop. Time to kill, have to kill, time to destroy, won't rest! Why…why…kahaha…kill him, kill him, kiiilll him~~~!"_

Subtract arrived near where the Data Trace was located. The forest seemed to be one of the open types, having big open areas.

"How generous of you, how generous. I'll kill you here then, a nice place to die. Nicer than the place you left me for sure."

He continued to follow the Data Trace signal, encountering nothing but trees. Just as he was about to check his Map , he heard several voices behind him. Without hesitation, he jumped into a bush and crouched down.

He peeked through the bush, seeing two people walking side by side. They both carried swords and were talking about Velder.

"Velder is still not in good condition, huh…" said one, a red-headed boy.

"Don't worry, little Els, you guys are definitely strong enough. I'm proud of you," said the other, a red-headed girl.

"I'm not worrying, sis," replied the boy.

Subtract realised who the red-head boy was from the Screen Glaive had watched from. He concluded that Add had ceased stalking the group and joined them. His left eye flickered at the thought. If he was to face Add, he'd have to separate the group somehow.

"Operator, scan the area in Cloaked Mode," commanded Subtract. His Operators turned invisible and spread out in the area.

"Now, now, where's the others? Hm?" muttered Subtract. He used his left eye to scan the area behind the two. There were no heat signatures behind them in the immediate vicinity, but he could spot a lot more far behind them.

The Operators returned, showing results on a Screen Map. It revealed the rest of the group. Recordings of the same people from Glaive's screen, but they were all older. When he looked back at the red-headed boy, he was indeed much older.

"That's where they are, huh? They're pretty spread out from my target…kuhuhu…time for some small entertainment to get the party rolling," he said. He covered his eye momentarily with his hand before revealing his left eye. Instead of being the pale version, it showed the robotic version of itself.

His left eye began to analyse the brain wave patterns of the two.

"Let's give the first two guests a good show," cackled Subtract before commanding, "Nasod Command – Cruel Deception."

The boy reacted instantaneously, frantically looking around. In his eyes and ears, he could hear the screams of people he knew.

The boy started running first, calling out names, "Aisha…guys, what's wrong?! Where are you?! Hold on, I'm coming to save you!"

To him, his friends were being ambushed by demons and were getting mortally wounded at this moment.

Next was the girl who stared at the spot the boy was. She just stared before falling to her knees, grasping nothing but air.

"No…no, this can't be. Els?" she stuttered. Tears started falling from her eyes. To her, the boy from earlier got headshotted by a demon's arrow and was dead in her arms. She glared at a random direction, growling, "You! I'm going to kill you!"

Spotting the imaginary demon, she ran towards the random direction.

"Cruel Deception is perfect indeed. She doesn't even notice that her brother ran past her, alive and kicking," said Subtract in an amused voice.

"Activate, Force Mode," he ordered. "Force Command – Hostile Invisibility."

In an instant, Subtract turned invisible and went towards where the "others" were. The second pair he encountered was a black-haired person with a Nasod arm and a female archer with long ears.

"Them next, huh? A little dash of anger and despair shall spice things up!" laughed Subtract. After he had casted Cruel Deception on them, the reaction was a little slower than the first two. He left the two to drown in their own hallucinations.

One saw a familiar figure with blonde hair, a noble who betrayed his friend and took everything away from him.

The other saw her own homeworld collapsing with everyone she knew screaming in misery and agony.

To Subtract's now broken mind, the screams of despair and anger were music to his ears. All suppression of bloodlust had completely disappeared. Just a hungry desire for vengeance.

"Onto the next one! A magician and an exorcist, hmm? It's not everyday that you get to see a possessed hairpin, also. It seemed to sense me also," observed Subtract. "I have to be quick before it tells its user."

"Calibrating Cruel Deception, attaching Stasis mode and correcting properties for magical use."

His left eye beeped, indicating the swift completion of the command. Without further ado, Cruel Deception was employed onto the two targets. The fox hairpin on one of the girl's hair bolted a little, its white shine dulling slightly as its wearer stared in front of her. Vision of a long lost sibling stood metres away from her, smiling slightly. He was almost hidden behind the trees and without further confirmation, the girl chased after her with tears in her eyes.

The magician saw a glimmer in the forest. Her eyes widening upon recognising what it really was. A golden ring with a purple amethyst attached to it, the same ring that stole all her powers. Someone was holding it in their hand.

"You! Give me that ring! It stole all my magic, I have to get it back!" yelled the magician as she went chasing after the cloaked figure.

"Hmm, the magician was quite disappointing. Kaka, what a simple girl," commented Subtract. "Now, let's see. That should be all of them, except for one."

There was one girl she saw near Add, who seemed slightly familiar. The Core on her head resembled a Nasod's to him, then he realised.

"Wait, she was in one of Glaive's Time files! Hmm, so she's the Queen of Nasods…the Nasods that were one of the primary reasons those wars started. Not like it matters now," said Subtract. "Now, according to the Operator's recent scan, she is a bit further away from the target. How convenient, how fucking perfect this is."

Subtract pulled up his Screen Map, seeing that Add was very close by. He started laughing until droplets of blood spouted from his mouth. He just grinned and continued laughing.

"Oh, well. Looks like I'll die very soon. I might as well go out with a bang, right? It won't fucking matter if it kills me faster as long as I can do what I came here for," he said. "Operator, Nasod Mode, activate."

His Operators beeped in acknowledgement and surrounded him. They summoned a black field around him, enveloping him until he couldn't be seen. The field slowly turned into a glass solid, which gradually dissolved to reveal dark blue platings. It glowed with a black aura as it gleamed with a malevolent shine. Hissing could be heard as the platings firmly attached itself to its wearer, fumes flowing out into the air. Fluorescent lightings were built into the armour, emitting a dark blue colour. His fingers were covered in claw-like metal, sharp to the touch. The fading glassy fog lifted slowly to reveal the headgear Subtract had. The entire headgear was covered in black with two lights signifying the eyes, a bright turquoise glow. Two streams of the same light went down to the bottom of the chin, giving the appearance of tears. As if the armour was crying itself.

With finishing touches, few white lines decorated the armour along with the headgear.

"Khaha…perfect. Nasod Command – Energetic Concord: Destruction Channel," he commanded. His armour lights flashed before returning to its dark colour. Two guns appeared in his hands. "This Channel always feels right…to destroy my enemies with my two Annex: Annihilations."

With the guns in hand, he closed in on the area where Add was. Straight ahead was the one person he sought to kill. Someone who left him behind to die, to be tortured and to be abandoned. Not even those eight years spent under Glaive's care were merciful. Ultimately, Subtract's own life was just a Sadist's Programming.

**A/N: And that's an end to this long chapter - ~! Thank you for reading, please review/favourite/follow/share! TT^TT I praise those that were able to read this long chapter *gives cookie***

**And thank you to Retisu for adding this fanfic to his/her follow~! owo, you rock!**


	11. Proelium

**A/N: The chapter everyone's been waiting for~! Enjoy!**

Subtract pulled up his gun, aiming it in front of him. Seeing Add ahead, he stayed in the shadows for a warning sniper shot. He used his left eye to zoom in and aim.

"Distance: 25 yards, Direction: 11 o'clock, Wind: None, Humidity: 30%, Acceptable targeting error: 6.35 milimetres, Warning shot: Loaded," said Subtract as he pulled the trigger. The bullet whizzed through the air at an inhumane speed, barely missing Add's head by less than an inch.

Not wasting time with the warning shot, Subtract walked out of the shadows.

"Did that scare you? Well, long time no see, isn't it?" greeted Subtract, smiling within his headgear.

"Who are you? Are you challenging me to a fight?" asked Add who then grinned.

"To a fight? Haha…no, you're wrong," said Subtract. He pointed his gun at Add. "I'm challenging you to a fight to the death."

Subtract fired two shots as distraction, whilst turning his gun into blades. Add had deflected the bullets with his dynamos, unfazed by the distraction. He quickly charged up an electrical bullet and shot it, "Particle Shot!"

Subtract quickly blocked the bullet with his arm and swung his blade downwards on Add. Another deflect lead to the beginning of furious blows. Subtract's left eye was analysing the attack pattern of Add, making it easier for him to take the advantage.

"Dissolver!" Add's dynamos fired five electrical shots at Subtract, dazing him for one moment.

"Kaka, you're not turning the tide here! Roundabout Slicer!" yelled Subtract. His Nasod Armour enhanced his speed drastically, letting him spin around. The blades had created a mini-blade tornado, a small moment of invincibility.

"Then, how about this?! Quicksilver Accel!" A ball of spinning plasma appeared in his hand and pulled Subtract. With a dynamic force, he was pulled back and forth. The ball of plasma exploded instantaneously, stunning Subtract.

"Magnetron!" Three spinning disks surrounded Add, powering his hits. This combo didn't damage Subtract as his Armour protected him from most of the attacks, but he was already starting to get slightly tired. His Nasod Heart had begun to slow down.

Subtract switched to his gun, leaving his left gun as a longer blade. He distanced himself from Add by firing a few electrical shots before reloading his gun. He fired the gun at Add again, which was about to be deflected. In the last second, Add dodged the bullet and let it hit a tree behind him.

The bullet shot through the tree, blasting through the trunks. Several trees fell as a result.

"Nice dodge," commented Subtract. "But you won't be dodging for long. Annex, switch to Gatling Mode!"

Subtract's guns changed shape, its barrel contained numerous hive-shaped barrels within. He started shooting at Add who mostly dodged them, unable to get close. He quickly ducked into a cluster of trees.

_Hmm? Is he planning an attack?_ thought Subtract. He could see a dark purple glow behind the trees, his left eye reading a high electricity frequency.

"Nasod Command – Energetic Concord: Defensive Channel!" commanded Subtract. His Annex: Annihilations disappeared as steams of white light lined against his arms and legs. "Motion Blocker, Dome!"

A hexagonal shield surrounded Subtract in an instant, giving off a dark blue glow. A total of twelve electrical bullets shot out of the cluster, homing in on him. The bullets were blocked by the shield. Subtract let down the shield and threw invisible bombs into the trees, "Air Explosion!"

The bombs instantly exploded upon impact, destroying the cluster of trees where the attack came from. There was no reaction from the area. No screams, or agonised sounds. Just the sound of silence. The exploded area was covered in ash, which could've meant that Add was dead.

There wasn't a single feel of satisfaction, but suspicion. Subtract looked around him, searching for any signs of movement. He closed his eyes and focused on the sound around him. He could hear the rustling of trees from all sides, making it harder for him to focus.

So he focused on the sound waves, looking for any weird frequencies. _Normal wind goes at 10mph, wind is estimated to be approximately 12mph. Wind is travelling east, slight disturbance in the east, rustling is off by 0.05%, meaning…_

Subtract pulled up a shield to his east. He heard something hit his shield and opened his eyes. His shield was slightly damaged.

"Keke, not bad! You're not a bad opponent!"

Subtract's eyes widened as he quickly turned around, just to be hit by an electrical force. Add had appeared behind him and caught him in a combo loop, not letting Subtract recover or escape.

"Particle Accel!"

Subtract could hear something charge up before a strong blast hit against him, stunning him. He was caught in another combo. Enough of this…

Subtract's right eye turned yellow and time began to slow down around him for a moment.

_Operator Point Mode._

"OP Mode, activate!"

Swirling blue energy surrounded Subtract, giving off a spatial impulse. The armour glowed darkly, radiating time energy. Add had been pushed back by the spatial impulse slightly, but he had distanced himself cautiously.

Subtract moved his right hand behind him, "Operator Support System." (OSS)

His six Operators had reappeared behind him, covered in blue energy. They opened up to reveal barrels, already charging up and ready for assault.

Without a single word, Subtract charged at Add and threw a punch. The punch itself hit a forcefield, releasing a black spear. Add had dodged to the right and attempted to jump at the opening.

"Naïve, too naïve," commented Subtract. A forcefield had appeared to his right and a black spear ejected from it, stabbing at Add. He barely managed to dodged as the spear pierced his side.

"Ghk!" Add was pushed back by the impact.

"Hammer Sentry!" yelled Subtract. He summoned a large hammer head from a forcefield, pulling it down towards Add who barely managed to block it. The hammer head became heavier as if gravity itself was pushing it down. Spikes like fangs began to protrude downwards, strengthening its impact.

"Tch, you're persistent," growled Subtract. The Operators began to make a humming noise and shot at Add, spreading out towards the side. Subtract heard anguished yelling from beneath the hammer, but the hammer itself wasn't falling any further. He knew that the hammer wouldn't last forever and he could feel something dangerous was coming.

As soon as Subtract's hammer disappeared, he raised up a barrier as something electrocuted the air. A flash of powerful electrical energy could be seen before it became more visible. Subtract's eyes widened to see that none of his attacks did much damage. Layers of purple electricity, which could only be described as armour, had enveloped Add.

"So you had an ace up your sleeve, huh? That won't make a difference!" said Subtract.

Add just laughed before replying, "Won't make a difference, huh? We'll just have to see, won't we?!"

Before Subtract could react, Add blinked behind Subtract. _He's faster?_ Subtract's right eye turned yellow once more, slowing the time around him. He managed to turn around to block Add's punch as time returned to normal. Add began to punch again and again, his Dynamos enforcing his attacks. Black energy started to pour out of his hits, becoming more continuous. Even if Subtract tried to jump out, Add would just punch him down again.

"Kehe, how interesting, but you're missing the point!" yelled out Subtract. He was enjoying this battle as he smiled widely from ear to ear.

"Deadly Adaptation!" commanded Subtract as the specs in his armour changed. It had attuned to the electrical element of Add's attack, increasing its defence dramatically. He interrupted Add's combo with the adaptation and quickly summoned two black spears on his hands. He charged at Add, each impact enforced by the support of his Operators.

His own attacks ceased for a moment as he coughed out blood. The wet fluid splattered onto the visor of his headgear. A robotic voice could be faintly heard in pieces, "Nasod Heart…ill begin to shut down…four minutes."

_Four more minutes, huh? Khaha…what a challenge!_

"What's this? Getting distracted? Only weaklings do that!" sneered Add as summoned a dark purple drone behind him. It had three protruding fangs that surrounded a bright light. "Shooting Chaser!"

Four drones appeared and targeted Subtract, shooting red lasers in a continuous fashion. As Subtract tried to fight back, the drones wouldn't stop attacking. In return, his OSS began to target the drones and shot at them. His movements had become slower and he had noticed. Blood wasn't being passed through his body fast enough for him to react quickly.

_I'm not dying yet! I have to kill him now! Before, it's time…_

He coughed more blood and this time, his eyesight became blurry.

"…Heart…shut down…three minutes…failure to pump blood…two minutes."

He felt himself fall. Is this it? _How fucking humiliating…what a shitty way to die._ He expected there to be another blow to end his life, but nothing came. Instead, he heard a familiar voice calling out.

"Wait, Add! Don't kill him!" The voice belonged to someone he had met. He could see blurry colours of pink and realised that it belonged to Apple.

"Less than thirty sec…failure imminent."

He felt a gush of air enter his headgear, but couldn't feel anything else. His own body refused to move, his eyesight remained blurry and the slow thudding of his heart echoed in his ears.

The last thing he saw and heard were two purple-red eyes and, "Subtract? Is that you?"

Subtract's own consciousness faded into nothingness.

**A/N: And that's the end to Chapter 11! The battle between Subtract and Add has ended~! If you liked this chapter, review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And thanks to Skyyblue001 and STARdini for adding this fanfiction to his/her follow~! O uo b**

**Replying to the reviews~  
**

**SuzukaMizuchi - There goes your delicious fish (of any kind)! And yep...OP.**

**tricksterflame - Thanks for the review! Hope you liked this chapter~!**

**FriFriFurretball - owo b And, no worries~**


	12. Nightmare Prelude

"So, you're here again, hm?" sighed someone. Subtract opened his eyes and glared at the person in the darkness. The shadowy entity appeared to be sitting on air and was short in height. Both of its arms were resting upon its knees while its face rested in both hands. "It's hardly surprising, seeing how weak you are."

As always, Subtract couldn't talk in this unknown place. He didn't know when this entity started talking, or insulting him. It pissed him off to no end since he couldn't say anything back to spite the entity.

It stood up and walked over to him, looking down at Subtract.

"It's funny how that whenever you return here, you still hold that same hateful expression. As much as you hate me, I'm still not real. Oh, but then, you're just a little brat with a fucked up brain, right? Not being able to tell fiction from reality, that's how stupid you are," it sneered, snickering. The snickering turned into giggling, the giggling turned into laughter before stopping.

"But, you know, Subtract…you don't have a right to be dying right now. You know why?" questioned the entity. The entity crouched down to Subtract's height and stared into his eyes. Two yellow eyes could be seen on its face, cold and hostile. "You haven't atoned for your sin yet."

Subtract's eyes widened in shock. Memories flashed through his head painfully, reminding him of eight years ago. Back in the torture chamber, back in the Slave Trader Camp, back in time, the six brutal days.

"You remember Mary and Tom, don't you? They were both siblings abandoned by their parents. They took care of you and mopped up your mess. Slaves, just like you. Tortured, just like you."

The flashes of memories stopped at an image of two bloodied corpses. They were mutated beyond recognition, laid bare like leftover lumps of meat and bones.

"But even so, you're the one who killed them! You hesitated, you stopped, you screamed in pain, you stopped! They died because of you! You wrecked their only dream, the only hope they had! You killed them, you did this to them! It's your fault, it's your fault, it's your fault…and you know fully why it is, don't you? You don't deserve to be forgiven and you certainly aren't allowed to die. Dying isn't atoning…it's a sin."

_No, I didn't kill them. I didn't kill them, I didn't kill them. I didn't do this, it wasn't my fault, it's not. After all, I wasn't the butcher. I didn't kill them!_

"At least you chose their names right. They're just like the siblings in that nursery rhymes of yours. The tragic way that those two died were really entertaining. You were so, so desperate, but you still couldn't save them."

***Crack!***

Faint cracking sounds came from below as large fissures began to open up

"Hahaha…well, time's up. You should be heading back now and don't forget, don't you ever forget what you've done. Your time of atoning has begun to tick again," giggled the entity. It watched Subtract fall through the cracks then walked away, back into the darkness.

"So you're saying, Apple, that this guy is Add's younger brother? I can't really bring myself to believe it," said Ara. She placed her spear next to her as she sat down on a chair. "They do look similar, though."

"They both give off evil intentions. It's not that hard to believe," reasoned Eun.

"And he was the one making those illusions? This guy isn't any better!" commented Aisha. "The illusion he made Elesis, Elsword, Raven and Rena have were really inhumane!"

The Elparty had gathered together whilst Apple was telling them about Subtract in Add's laboratory. Add had went off somewhere.

"I know, but I believe he had a reason. I'm not saying that what he did can be justified, just…he isn't a bad person," said Apple.

"Apple, how do you know him?" asked Eve, sitting on her drones.

"I've known about him for awhile. I can't exactly explain how, but the Nasod Core had held information about him. When I woke up, I saw it in one of the data files," explained Apple. "When I met him near Velder, I knew that he was searching for Add—"

"So, where is that bastard?! I want to make him pay for what he did!" yelled Elsword.

Aisha whacked him at the back of his head with her wand.

"Be quiet, you musclehead, Apple hasn't finished talking!" said Aisha. She looked back at Apple and apologized.

"No, that's alright," responded Apple.

"Well, we can't exactly let Subtract go unpunished. Even though he is a sibling of one of us, his own individual actions can't be overlooked," said Elesis. "And when he wakes up, he might attack Add again."

"Though, I wouldn't really mind that," muttered Elsword.

"We'll deal with it when Subtract is awake," said Eun. "For now, we wait."

"Is there anything else we should know about Subtract, Apple?" questioned Eve.

"Nothing else, no…" Apple looked back at the room where Subtract was sleeping. The window to the room showed that he was plugged up to several machines and an ECG heart rate monitor. An oxygen mask was strapped to his face, fogging up in steady intervals. "For now, I'll watch over him for now. I'll tell you guys when he's awake."

The Elparty nodded in response.

Apple entered Subtract's room and sat down on a chair next to Subtract's bed. He had been unconscious for almost a week, in temporary coma. She felt relieved more than anything ever since the operation was a success. It didn't seem possible for Subtract to still be alive. His Nasod Heart had stopped functioning and there were no surgeons from Velder that knew how to operate on hearts. Let alone a robotic heart.

It was a quick operation. The Nasod Heart had both broken parts and corrupted data that disallowed the heart from functioning properly. No one, but Add was allowed in the room. He just left after the operation succeeded, saying he needed to go fetch something.

Apple took the medical clipboard next to her and scanned over the details. Other than the positive successes, there were medical histories that worried her.

"Several operation scars can be seen on the chest area along with the arms and legs. Scars can be found underneath the fingernails. Due to Nasod Heart failing, lifespan has been shortened slightly. Leg and hip bones have been mostly replaced with prosthetic bones. Repair has been completed…" read Apple. She looked at Subtract again. "What have you been through?"

She heard someone coming inside the room and turned around to see Rena.

"Is he still in a coma?" Rena asked. Apple nodded in response. Rena took a seat next to Apple. "Apple, back there, you said Subtract isn't a bad person, right?"

"Yes, I did," replied Apple. "Are you still recovering from Cruel Deception?"

Rena gave Apple a look and waved it off.

"Something like that isn't enough to take me down, Apple. I'm pretty sure Raven and the others are fine, too. It just took us by surprise…"

"I don't think something like that could be described as just a surprise. Don't push yourself."

"I know that. I know my limit. I've lived long enough to know where my strengths and weaknesses lie."

"That's good, then."

Apple checked the ECG heart rate monitor and frowned. It was making quick beeping noises as the heart rate started to rise above normal heart beat parameters.

"Wha…" Apple and Rena both stood up alarmed as Subtract opened his eyes. At first, it just looked like he woke up but something was definitely off.

"His…his eyes…they're…yellow?!" gasped Apple.

"Oh my El…this isn't possible…there's no way someone could summon it to this extent! This is dangerous!" yelled Rena. "We have to get the others…"

"Others…? Kuku, too bad but…" Subtract rose from his bed and jumped, floating in the air with blue particles surrounding him. A dark blue mask formed on his face. "Will you two be able to escape me, I wonder?"

**A/N: And that's yet another end to a chapter! If you like this chapter and fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~! Also, sorry for updating a lil' late~!**

**Thank you to Dragonbron356 and Ghost-chanzu for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows~! O wo b**

**Replies to the reviews~!  
Kaito Hiroyuki - Subtract doesn't die too easily ouo.**

**SuzukaMizuchi - Thanks, and also...I wouldn't be so sure with what you said kuhuhu...**

**We've reached over 2,000 views~! ^A^ *gives everyone any-flavoured cookies!* Arigatou gozaimashita~!**


	13. Nightmare Havoc

"Subtract? What happened…" started Apple. She was harshly interrupted with a hand grabbing her neck. She was forcefully pushed back into the wall without time to react. Subtract put a finger to his mask.

"Be quiet, I'm the one killing you," said Subtract in a cold voice.

"Let go of Apple!" yelled Rena as she pointed her bow at him.

"Hmmm? What's this? A challenge?" laughed Subtract as he released Apple. She was already rendered unconscious by the blow. "Then, let me start first."

"Rift's…" Multiple portal fields appeared in front of Subtract, making a gradual screaming noise as it widened. "Rage!"

A huge amount of spatial energy shot out of the portals, blasting away the walls. Rena had quickly jumped up and shot arrows at Subtract, who raised up a shield.

Rena charged her bow slightly, creating a magical sphere.

"Humming Wind!" She shot the sphere at Subtract and it exploded upon impact, breaking through the shield. Subtract was blown away by the powerful wind force into the wall.

"I won't let you recover! Guided Arrow!" She released three magical arrows coated with intense wind energy at Subtract. They pierced through the air as they all homed in on him.

"I thought you would be fun. I guess it really is impossible to have fun with someone so fucking weak," said Subtract as he reached out towards the arrows. "Time Alchemy - Void."

The arrows slowed down to a stop before disintergrating into the air. No trace of wind energy could be felt. The arrows had dissolved from time completely. Rena's eyes widened in shock as she couldn't believe what happened.

Rena looked into Subtract's eyes as she fell and finally understood the dreadful premonition she felt.

_This…this boy…his power doesn't just come from spatial energy…it comes from Henir himself! Is he even human anymore?_ thought Rena.

"Force Command – Enclosed Field," commanded Subtract. Rena was immediately trapped within a boxed dimension.

"Wha…"

"Time to finish you off, weak Elf. Rift's…" Subtract summoned the portal field again and let it charge up to its fullest. "Rage!"

The Elgang were hanging out around the front of the laboratory, planning for their next course of action. Other than the demon invasion, they also had to worry about citizen safety. The relentless attacks of the demons had lowered considerably when the Elgang arrived.

Elesis and Raven were discussing the locations of main demon attacks, while Aisha and Elsword were discussing citizen safety. Ara and Eve were sitting near the entrance of the laboratory.

"Rena hasn't come out for a while, hasn't she?" asked Ara worriedly. "She did say she was going to come back in a couple minutes."

"Then, should we go check in on her?" responded Eve.

Before Ara could say anything else, the wall right next to them exploded into pieces. Dense energy shot forth into the cluster of trees, burning it down into ashes.

"What's going on?!" yelled Elesis. The Elgang immediately went into battle stance as soon as they saw someone stepping out of the building. Smoke was everywhere and all they could see was a silhouette. Something was thrown out of the smoke to the gang's side.

"R-Rena?" said Raven as he rushed to her side. There were many burnt marks on her as she was unconscious.

"This is horrible…who the hell would do this?!" said Elsword as he glared at the silhouette. "Oi! Who the hell are you and why did you do this?"

The silhouette didn't answer, but the smoke began to clear off. Elsword was about to yell again when he felt an incredible amount of murderous intent coming from the silhouette. The whole Elgang could feel it. The silhouette emanated a murderous intent filled to the brim with brutality.

Suddenly, the smoke was blown away with a gale force. Everyone had their weapons to stand in place while the gale force blew violently against them. It wasn't the normal sort of heavy wind, too. The gang felt like the wind was choking them, making them suffocate under its intense pressure.

"What's with this abnormal energy? It's…too strong to belong to a normal human! It feels way too evil!" wailed Aisha, struggling to hold onto her wand.

As sudden as the wind came, it stopped completely.

"It finally stopped…" said Ara, breathing a sigh of relief.

"It's too soon to relax, Ara. Everyone, be careful!" warned Eun.

"Hahaha…I admit…you guys don't look as weak as that elf," said Subtract, laughing in a mocking way.

"Oi, you bastard! Why did you attack Rena?!" questioned Elsword.

"Els, I don't think Subtract has an excuse for attacking Rena," said Elesis. "There's no point in asking a criminal for his reasons of crime! Subtract, I hope you're prepared for the consequences!"

"Wait, that's Subtract? Isn't he still in coma?!" exclaimed Elsword in shock.

"Idiot Elsword, that's not the issue right now!" said Aisha. They all faced Subtract who seemed to be waiting patiently for them to finish. All of them readied their weapons.

"Finished talking? Good, then let me propose a challenge," said Subtract. He tapped on his mask. "If you manage to break off my mask, I'll apologise to dear Rena for hurting her. You can do whatever you want with me. You can kill me in any way you want, if you like. Be it to burn me, drown me, or torture me, choose your own poison."

"Wha…are you insane?!" said Ara. "Why the hell would you propose such a challenge?"

"Khaha, insane? If you hadn't notice that already, then you guys are seriously retarded. Of course, I'm insane, you fucking fools! As for why I proposed such a challenge? No reason, I just want to kill," answered Subtract. "Now, all of you, come at me with everything you've got!"

Subtract began to emit a spatial aura, breaking the ground around him. The cracks in the ground revealed a turquoise light, pulsating.

"If you freaking say so, I'm going to beat you up!" yelled Elsword as he charged forth. "Prepare yourself, Subtract!"

"Wait, idiot Elsword, you can't just charge at him randomly like that!" called out Aisha as she hurried forward. "Jeez, fine!"

Aisha stood still while gathering mana from around her, glowing white.

"Mortal Blow!" Elsword rapidly hit the ground, causing flaming rocks to shoot up towards Subtract.

"Saber…" Elesis charged up her side which covered itself in flames. "Extinction!" She swung her sword forth, unleashing a wave of fire.

"Shockwave – Cutter!" Raven unleashed a shockwave from his sword with a fowardly slash.

"Amplify Mode." Red icons started to surround Eve as she raised her hand in front of her. "Particle Ray!" A high-energy particle beam shot out from her fingertips, flashing through a red field. The beam became bigger and stronger, cutting through the air.

"Plasma Cutter!" A yellow beam, swirling with destructive force, blasted forth from Aisha's fingers.

"Wolf Stance 4 – Wolf Fang!" Ara summoned dark spears one after another, launching them forward.

Subtract just stood still and looked up with a wide grin on his face. He laughed in low tone as he put his hands into his pockets.

"Hahaha…so weak. Is this all you fools got? I'm disappointed. If you think this is enough to defeat me, then let me shatter your pitiful illusions!" Subtract laughed as cracks started to appear in the air. He raised both his hands to his side.

"Space Break!" At the exact moment when he clapped both his hands together, the cracks in the air became gigantic and sliced through the attacks. The Elgang's attacks disappeared in an instant and a wave of dark blue energy collided into them. Their Mana was being eaten up by the wave itself as it vanished into thin air.

"How could this be?! How could our attacks just…disappear like that?" said Ara.

"Didn't I say come at me with everything you've got? If you don't try…" began Subtract. He glared at all of them with a hostile look.

_**"I'll kill you all in an instant."**_

**A/N: And that's the end to this chapter! Thankchu for reading! If you liked this fanfiction/chapter so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Thanks to ThiefofStealth for addin' Half-Assed Reality to his/her follow~!**


	14. Nightmare Insanity

**A/N: Yesh, early update! *claps imaginary hand***

* * *

"Don't underestimate us!" yelled Elsword as he charged at Subtract again. Subtract just grinned and caught Elsword's sword as he swung it down.

"Void Seek." The fingertips of Subtract's glowed blue for a moment before sending a shock through the sword. Elsword felt a small shock from the attack. Thinking it was nothing, he forced his sword out of Subtract's hand and slashed at him again. Suddenly, he felt all his energy drained from his body and fell onto the floor.

"Els!" called out Elesis.

"Burst Wave!" Elesis struck her sword in the ground and sent forth a burst of flames at Subtract as distraction. She rushed in quickly and grabbed Elsword, dashing out to a safer location.

"Rakshasa Stance 3: Spear Prison!" Ara leapt into the air and threw energy spears, aiming them directly at Subtract. Subtract gave Ara a glare before leaping into the air, surrounded by dark blue particles. The energy spears Ara threw were immediately blown into nothingness as they made contact with the particles.

"How weak!" Subtract summoned blades and aimed them at Ara.

"Repel!" An orange aura covered Ara as it reflected the blades at Subtract, who blocked them with a barrier.

Raven had jumped into the air and swung down his sword onto Subtract. This caught him by surprise as he took the hit. "Shockwave – Divider!" Raven released a diagonal slash at Subtract, adding to the damage.

Elesis slashed down on Subtract before wrapping her sword in flames. "Red Lotus Sword!" She continued on from there, executing sword combos.

Aisha jumped into the air as Elesis stepped back. "Guillotine Press!" She dived downwards with a powerful force twice, giving Subtract damage. She quickly withdrew.

"How's that, Subtract? We're not so weak, aren't we?!"

"Hahaha…how fun!" laughed Subtract. "Then, let's amp up the fun, yes?"

"OP Mode, Release!" Swirling spatial energy surrounded Subtract, shattering the ground around him to pieces. Space fragments appeared behind his back, giving the area a dark glow. "Operator System Support."

Subtract's Operators appeared behind his back, mingling with the space fragments. They gave off an ominous feel as they opened up to reveal multiple barrels. His clothes started to turn darker as the lighter colours became black and the highlights of his clothes turned into a turquoise colour.

In the instant his Operators had fully formed, they started shooting at the Elgang around him. He dashed forwards at Aisha who shot out a magical orb at him with her wand. He blinked to the side and dived his hands into her stomach. At that moment, she teleported away.

"Aisha, are you okay?!" yelled Elsword as he stood up.

Aisha covered her stomach with her hand, coughing out blood.

"I-I'm fine…idiot, stay focused on the battle!" she replied.

"Subtract, you bastard!" roared Elsword. "Armageddon Blade!" A gigantic red sword extended from Elsword's sword, cutting through the bullets that continued to spray through the air.

Subtract dodged past Elsword's slash and went behind him. A blade materialised in Subtract's hand.

"No you don't!" Raven had appeared behind Subtract and engaged him in a sword fight. Subtract's Operators had focused on Elsword.

"Huhu, even if it's two on one, this isn't as much fun as I anticipated. All of you should be trying to take me down," said Subtract as he parried Raven's attack. He charged up his blade and exerted his energy into his sword in a sudden burst, causing Raven to be blown back from the impact.

Subtract was immediately met with fire smashing into his back.

"Gah!" gasped Subtract, falling forwards. Ara had already appeared in front of him and thrusted her spear at his mask. "Just kidding!"

Subtract blinked next to Ara.

"Chaosic Space!" Ara was wrapped within a dark field Subtract had summoned.

"No!" bellowed Eun as she hastily created a shield around Ara. The dark field exploded drastically, giving Ara numerous wounds. Thanks to Eun's hastily-made barrier, the wounds were minimal.

Subtract felt something graze his arm as he dodged to the right. The searing pain caused him to gasp as he motioned his Operators to start firing more heavily. He took a glimpse at his left arm which bled profusely downwards.

"I'm not done yet!" Elsword released a large rune on Subtract. "Ice Rune!"

Subtract was trapped in a blue rune that slowed down his movements dramatically. Elsword unleashed a fury of sword combos on him, not letting him escape.

"Raven!" he called before tripping Subtract. Raven quickly brought down his sword onto Subtract's mask. In that instant, the tip of the sword reached a barrier. "Wha…"

"Oh, come on, did you really think it was that easy?" questioned Subtract as he sat up. A puddle of blood had amassed on the ground as he made slight swaying motions. He forced himself to stand up. _Hah…this kind of situation again? Blood running out of my veins like a faucet? Minus…minus…_

The whole Elgang was shocked to see that Subtract was standing straight without swaying.

"Hm? What are you staring at, you retards?" he said, raising his blade at them.

"H-how can you stand up like that?! You're heavily wounded!" shouted Aisha. Her wounds had been bandaged by Elesis who was fixing up Ara's and Aisha's wounds.

"Heavily wounded? What are you talking about? This is nothing." He charged at Elsword and slashed down on him. "Void Seek."

As soon as Elsword collapsed, Raven interrupted Subtract with three downwards sword motions. "Berserker Blade!"

Subtract had dodged to the side and parried Raven's Nasod Arm down. _What the…? He's so fast even with all those wounds? What kind of monster is this person?_ thought Raven. Subtract proceeded in doing several combos, which were barely blocked. Without stopping at there, he tripped Raven and lifted his blade to kill him.

"Subtract! What do you think you're doing?!" bellowed someone. Subtract's blade just stopped short of an inch above Raven's head. He recognised that voice. The blade disappeared as he slowly turned to see who it was. It was Add. "Make another move and I'll kill you."

"Hoho…? Is that so?" responded Subtract. His own voice sounded distorted as he felt himself beginning to sway. Another pool of blood had amassed beneath him, making him realise how much blood he lost. "Why don't you try?"

He was about to dash forwards when he felt something stop him. Looking down, he saw Apple stopping him from moving.

"Move," commanded Subtract.

"Subtract, please don't. You don't want this. This isn't something you want," she said.

"Huuuuh? How the fuck would you know? Are you retarded? Maybe I should've really killed you back there." Subtract raised his hand to summon a blade.

"But you didn't. Instead of choosing to kill me, you hesitated and knocked me out."

Subtract's hand stopped, shivering slightly.

"I said, move." He pushed her aside and tried moving, but felt his body failing him. His legs buckled as he fell to his knees. He tried to stand up again and he managed to do so, but his whole body screamed in utter agony.

Apple walked towards Subtract and stared straight into his eyes.

"Why do you want to kill Add so much? He's family, isn't he? He's your older brother," she said.

"Shut the fuck up, shut up, shut up! What are you trying to do?!" he yelled, clutching his head.

"I'm not trying to do anything," she replied in a soft tone. "You don't have to suffer like this anymore."

She placed her hand on Subtract's, feeling it shake uncontrollably.

"You're lying, you're lying, you're…lying. I don't understand a single word you're saying."

Everything streamed through his head all at once. The time he spent in the laboratory, locked up inside a white room where no one but scientists entered. The time he spent in the experiment room, screaming in complete torment. The time he spent outside, destruction reigning his image of freedom. The Slave Trader Camp, where he lost all hope and faced torture. Losing everything, giving up on everything, hating everything.

He covered his ears, tears running down from his eyes. The mask cracked, letting pieces fall down one by one. He couldn't understand what was happening._ I don't understand, I don't want to understand, was everything up until now useless? I don't want to hear anymore. _

Hearing a small voice from long ago, _"Please…someone, take me away from here. I don't want to be here! Someone…someone save me!"_

He let out a shuddering cry and keeled over. Two gentle arms wrapped around him, pulling him in for an embrace. He cried and cried as Apple hugged him.

* * *

**A/N: That be the end to this chapter~! If you like this fanfic/chapter, please review/favourite/follow~!**

**To explain my chapter release schedule, just in case ~ I release every week, but on an unspecified day. Most of the time, it's on the weekends, but if I'm on a roll...it can be on the weekdays, too. Sorry if my release schedule is unstable ~ !**

**And thank you to Ebyi, Encendrel and MagicalMew for adding this fanfic to his/her following~!**

**Also, thanks to APHLync13 and Panadamonium Geist-Gott for adding this fanfic to his/her favourites~!**


	15. The Next Destination

**A/N: This chapter is a lil' short.**

* * *

"We should what?!" exclaimed Aisha. "Have him join us?!"

Add, Eve and Apple nodded their heads. They had proposed that Subtract joined the Elgang, but it wasn't so easy to accept. Seeing as how Subtract had tried to kill them before.

"We can't let him join the Elgang!" protested Elsword. "He's too dangerous."

"Elsword's right!" agreed Aisha.

"It's not like he has anywhere to go," said Rena. "I don't think letting him in is a bad idea."

"Rena, he tried to kill you," reasoned Aisha. "We'll definitely be in more danger if we let him join us."

"Hm? I tried to kill you guys, but I got a free pass, didn't I?" questioned Add. "Or have your brains rotted in such a short time?"

"I think Add's right," said Raven. "We allowed Add to join our group even though he tried to kidnap Eve."

"You agree with them, too, Raven?!" said Elsword.

"It's not like he attacked us for no reason. You saw how he was before, he was just lashing out because he didn't know what else to do. I say, we should let him join. If he tries to attack us again, we'll do something about it," explained Raven.

"I think so, too. Like Apple said, Subtract isn't a bad person. Let's just give him a chance," said Ara. "And plus, we're not so heartless to leave someone behind when they're suffering."

"Elsword, Aisha, please," begged Apple.

"Fine, then, but I won't acknowledge him as part of the group!" said Elsword. "For now, let's introduce ourselves to him."

Meanwhile, Subtract was sitting on a chair while working on his Operators. He felt somewhat calmer after the fight, having gone out of Time Mode. It didn't make sense to him how he could still be sane. He was sure that he lost all his grip on his own sanity back then.

Yet, here he was, calm and collected. The only concern was, that he felt emptier than anything. What he was to do now, he didn't know. He didn't feel like going back to Henir, though that was a possibility.

His thoughts were interrupted when the room's door had opened. The Elgang had entered the room, filling the empty spaces within it.

"What is it?" he asked in an indifferent tone. Most of them were surprised at his calm behaviour. Seeing him as "sane", was a new perspective for them.

"Nothing much…" answered Aisha, surprised.

"Then don't disturb me," he simply said and returned to working on his Operators.

"We're here to introduce ourselves," said Raven. Subtract looked up from his Operators, almost as if he was impatient. He said nothing and looked at them expectantly.

"I'll start first, then. My name is Raven, I'm a swordsman," said Raven.

"I'm Aisha, the genius mage!" announced Aisha.

"I'm Ara, and this is…," said Ara, pointing to her hairclip. Subtract raised a brow before hearing a voice.

"Eun," finished Eun. "I'm the Nine Tailed Fox Spirit that resides within this hairclip."

"My name's Rena, an elven archer," said Rena. Subtract took a glimpse of her bandages before looking to the next person.

"I'm the leader of this group, Elsword," said Elsword. "I'm also a swordsman!"

Subtract noticed that Elsword looked at him in a dismissive manner. He pretended not to notice it and saw his sister standing right next to him. He could tell she didn't trust him as well based on how she was slightly glaring at him.

"I'm Elsword's older sister, Elesis," she said. "I'm a sword wielder, as well."

He heard a distinct whirring coming from two oppositely-coloured drones. They had belonged to a person he recognised as the Queen of Nasods.

"I'm the Queen of Nasods, Eve," she said in an indifferent tone. She motioned to her drones, "The black drone is Moby and the white drone is Remy."

"I'm Apple, the Princess of Nasods~!" said Apple, smiling at Subtract. _Princess of Nasods, huh? So, that's why she was emitting Nasod signals._

"And I assume you already know who I am," said Add who was at the doorway.

"Of course," responded Subtract as he stood up. "How could I forgot the person who gave me my name?"

The whole Elgang either gasped, or looked surprised at the revelation.

"Wait, Subtract, Add's the one who named you?!" asked Rena, eyes widened.

"He did," he replied. "Back when I didn't have a name, yes."

"Well, Subtract, are you planning to do anything else now?" questioned Raven. The Elgang were slightly on alert, just in case Subtract were to attack them again.

He stayed silent for a moment. There was nothing he wanted to do. Stuck in a limbo of choices, he went with a simple answer, "There's nothing for me to do now, so no."

"You don't want to kill Add anymore?" inquired Elsword.

Subtract didn't answer that and just ignored Elsword out flat.

"Oi! Are you ignoring…" he began, but Apple interrupted him.

"Anyways, Subtract, we've got an important question to ask you," she said. "Would you like to join the Elgang?"

"Eh? Join the Elgang?" He contemplated about the offer. It didn't seem like a bad idea since he had nothing but time right now. There was no real objective for him and Henir was only a place to get stronger.

He noticed that the Elgang was waiting for his answer, seeing how he stayed silent for a minute or so.

He shrugged and said, "I don't see why not. I'll join the Elgang, then."

"Then I guess that settles that! You're now part of the Elgang, Subtract!" announced Apple.

_For now, it'll be interesting to see where this goes…_

* * *

**A/N:And that ends this chapter! If ya like this chapter/fanfic so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**I apologise that this chapter is a little short and a bit repetitive with the introductions...just wanted to get the intros there owo~!**


	16. Bridge Battle Start

The Elgang continued their expedition to their destination. They had told Subtract that they were returning to a place called, Hope Bridge, after defeating a Glitter demon named McGard the Blitzkrieg. They had explained that there were demons blocking the Velder Knights' path of retreating and that they needed to eliminate the demons there. It sounded simple enough for Subtract. Eliminating demons who had almost one to zero intelligence would be a piece of cake.

As they were walking, Subtract had pulled up a screen by using his Operators. He had noticed something different about them and he had the feeling that his right arm had been tinkered with. His right arm felt heavier. He frowned when he had accessed his Battle Systems, seeing that there were a batch of new files.

He was about to examine it when Aisha started talking, "Uwaaa, why do we have the manoeuvre through the forest instead of using the Main Path? We could've easily blown through the Demon forces there!"

She looked to Subtract. "Hey, don't you think so, too?"

Subtract just gave her a glance and ignored her.

"You don't have to exactly ignore me, I was just asking you a question," she muttered.

"I don't find any reason to answer a silly-ass question with an obvious answer," he said. "And you've been complaining throughout the whole trip, can't you just shut up for more than five minutes—or the whole walk?"

"Hey, you don't have to be so rude to Aisha!" said Elsword in an angry tone.

"And maybe you both need to shut up," he said, rolling his eyes.

"Oi, are you picking a fight, or something?" growled Elsword. He had his hand on his sword, ready to pull it out.

Subtract gave Elsword a glare and responded, "Yeah, maybe I'll beat you to a pulp so you can shut your annoying mouth!"

"You!" Elsword had already whipped out his sword and swung a heavy hit on Subtract. Subtract had grabbed the sword with his right arm, stopping its motion completely. The sharpness of the sword, however, cut through the fake skin layer grafted onto his right arm. There was a burning sensation that emanated from his right arm, making him narrow his eyes. He quickly threw the sword, along with Elsword, to the side.

His right arm began to smoke a little.

Elsword stood up and charged at Subtract before his face was met with a powerful wind force. Rena had shot a burst of wind energy at Elsword.

"You shouldn't pick a fight like that!" yelled Rena. She sighed and turned her head to Subtract. He wasn't paying attention, but was focused on his arm. It started blowing out more smoke. The fake skin had been burnt through, melting into nothing.

He took off his jacket, seeing his Nasod arm fully exposed. It was a dark onyx colour with turquoise lines streaming through it in a symmetric style. It shined under the sun, giving off a polished gleam. The surface of the arm looked almost like glass as the turquoise lines glowed against it. The tips of the fingers were slightly clawed, but looked completely black. The arm itself wasn't connected to Subtract's shoulder as it was attached to a glowing magnet.

The Elgang stared at the arm in surprise.

"Subtract, you have a Nasod arm?" asked Raven.

"I do, but to be precise, this isn't really my arm…it's been replaced by a rejected prototype I invented," muttered Subtract, observing it. He tapped on the arm, pulling up a screen. There were several functions of the arm, but most important of all, there was a single initial on the backdrop screen. _A? The one who made this arm…wait a minute…_

He tapped the screen again, making it disappear.

"Oi, were you the one who replaced my arm without my permission?" questioned Subtract as he glared at Add.

"So what if I did?" responded Add. "Your other arm was pretty much done in our fight. You only managed to use it in the last fight because of your Time Mode, idiotic dumbass."

"Hey, isn't that a bit too harsh to call your brother that?" said Ara, frowning. She turned to Subtract. "And Subtract, Add was the one who revived you after your heart failed. You shouldn't be acting that way to someone who saved you."

"Ara's right and we should continue walking. We don't have much time," pointed out Eve. Fire could be seen in the distance behind the trees. Explosions could be heard as smoke begun to billow up furiously. "You guys can save your argument for later, but this situation requires our attention."

She gave Add a pointed look, who then looked away in response.

The explosions grew bigger, making the sky look darker.

As soon as the Elgang arrived at the bridge, fire could be seen everywhere on the bridge. The ground was littered with wide cracks as there were gaps on the bridge itself. The once blue water was now an orange-red, lit up by the light of flames.

"This is worse than I thought," said Elesis. "We need to hurry!"

The Elgang charged onto the bridge, bringing out their weapons. The demons destroying the bridge had noticed the Elgang's presence and started charging at them.

"No you don't! Blaze Wing!" Elesis sent forth a blazing fireball from her sword, piercing through the demons.

She ran forth while shooting out fire as new demons emerged out of nowhere. Wyverns started to appear from the sky, shooting out fire onto the gang.

Ara charged forth and jumped into the air. "Spell – Aerial Blades!" Golden spear blades materialized around her, slicing through the wyverns in a rapid motion. At the second she landed on the ground, demons started to surround her.

"Not on my watch! Windmill!" Elsword ran forth to the demons surrounding Ara, spinning around wildly. He spun through the enemies, slashing through them.

Subtract had stood back, watching the Elgang mow down waves of demons. He looked at his arm and sighed.

"Let's see if I still remember this system's blueprint," he muttered and whipped out his left arm. "Open, Operator Artillery!"

His clothes started to turn darker with machine parts securing itself on his back, opening up to reveal empty sockets. The sclera of his left eye turned black as the iris glowed menacingly with a turquoise glow. Around him, multiple black screens had appeared with lines of code streaming down them.

"Open, OP Annex," he commanded. The screens bleeped and closed one by one as his Operators whirred in acknowledgement.

Three of his Operators wrapped around his left arm, transforming it into a blade. The turquoise lines in his arms opened up, moving downwards to make a blade shape. Robotic parts encircled his arms and converted into plasma gun parts. It connected with the magnetic parts of the arms, keeping a small distance in between. His other three Operators attached themselves to the empty sockets behind Subtract, opening up to reveal small jets.

A glitter demon in the distance blew onto a bullhorn, signalling more demons to flood the bridge.

"How convenient," said Subtract. "Time to rip these demons apart, isn't it?"

Subtract rushed forth into the army of demons, passing swiftly through the Elgang. His jets allowed him to hover over the ground and gave him aerial capability.

Five Panzers ran at Subtract, waving around their maces. Glitter rock throwers stood on top platforms, raining down boulders.

"Wait, Subtract! Don't charge in like that…!" started Rena.

"Single Fire Disposition – Semi-Auto Setting." His guns shifted into position as they automatically targeted the rock throwers above. The bullets penetrated through the throwers' armour, searing through their dark flesh.

He jumped above the Panzers. His jets moved to his feet, making him hover over the Panzers' maces. With a grin, he threw sharp blades at them, "Lunatic Ripper!"

The blades embedded themselves within their flesh, tearing violently through the body. With their mangled corpse lying on the floor, Subtract continued on to the next waves of demons. Guards supported by Alchemists went into position, lined with Glitter protectors.

"That doesn't change a thing, demonic fools!" Subtract sent out a drone above the demons, which tripled in size. "Impaler Rain!"

Nasod Spears rained down heavily onto the demons, skewering them. Blood sprayed from the gaping wounds, showering the ground with black blood. Subtract had cut down the remaining survivors with his blades, not letting any escape his massacre.

He felt himself being overcome with bloodthirst. Letting out loose laughter, his blades started to be covered in Dark El energy. On his left eye, displayed an inner screen with the words, "Attribute Enhancement: Dark El, Emotion Level confirmed: Insanity."

* * *

**A/N: And that'd be the end of the 16th Chapter! If you like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~! O wo b**

**Thanks to ColorlessNight who added this fanfiction to his/her follow/favourite~! And thank you to Nagisaa-san, too! (Clannaaaad!)**

**Replying to the reviews: **

**SuzukaMizuchi: Yep, and hmmm...I don't know about that.  
****Nagisaa-san: Thanks! I hope ya enjoy the ride from here on out. Also, about your request, I'll send ya a PM regarding it, so keep an eye out for it~**

**(Optional to read =w=)**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake **

**Introducing DL (Diabolic Lunatic) and OS (Ookami.S)!**

**DL: Che! Why the hell do I have to introduce myself?  
****OS: OwO Hello, reader! *waves* I'm Ookami.S!  
DL: I'm Diabolic Lunatic *glares*  
OS: =w= That ain't very nice to do, DL, apologise!  
DL: Heck no!  
OS: Apologise! Or I won't give you a cookie!  
DL: Do you want to freakin' die?  
OS: QAQ Why do you gotta be so r00d?**

**End of (Very) Half-Assed Omake owo**


	17. Intentions Among Fire

**A/N: (Please read) - As of this chapter, I'm turning the update schedule to one-two weeks. Since it takes me a little over a week to update, slapping on another week felt necessary. I'll still update as quick as I can, but the chapters will be more refined~! Also, enjoy the chapter...I hope ya like it ^~^**

**Note: If ya wondering which classes I'm using for the characters, I'm using all of them~Also,I recently made an omake section in the A/N below. Ya don't have to read it...it's pretty Half-Assed.**

* * *

More than half of the demon remnants had been taken down by Subtract alone. He had advanced forth, leaving weakened demons behind for the Elgang to cut down.

"He's on a total rampage," commented Raven, watching Subtract continuously kill demons.

Several siege towers stood in his way as archers rained down arrows. The demons begun to take on a strategic position, commanded by Glitter Commanders who barked out orders.

"Is this the best you can do, hm? I commend you demons for trying your best, but…" started Subtract, snickering slightly. "Your struggle ends here! Cannon Disposition – Half Setting!"

His guns took on the shapes of half-cannons before joining together. Their lines pulsated, giving off a low-frequency, electric noise. The cannon moved forward, above Subtract's head.

"Barrage Blaster!" yelled Subtract. The noise raised in volume before electricity started to spark from the muzzle. Within a second, an ultimately-dense force shot out from the cannon and obliterated the siege towers completely. Immense heat could be felt from the blast, melting the armours of the Commanders who stood on the side.

The cannons slowly reverted into their half-shapes, letting smoke emanate from their muzzles.

"Auto-Cannon Setting." The half-cannons quickly transformed again, into longer cannons. Their shapes turned thinner with their barrels becoming retractable. The hinges of the guns themselves became loosely attached, giving them free movement.

Subtract changed the shape of his blades to claw shapes, each having four pointed blades.

"Charging Strike!" He lunged forth at the nearest group of Commander, stabbing his claws into one. The claw momentarily extended through the commander and into the next one before withdrawing. More wyverns appeared from the sky, homing in on Subtract. The Auto-Cannons on Subtract's arms turned around instantly and shot the wyverns down.

Changing his blades back into their normal shapes, he slashed at the nearest guards and archers. Kenaz spirits started throwing fire at him, only to have the flame disappear when it got near.

"Kuku, are you that stupid?" he said, turning to face the spirits. "If existing ever told you anything, there are shit you can't set on fire, or burn out. Get that in your tiny heads, you pyromaniac fuckers!"

His Auto-Cannons immediately trained on the spirits and shot through them—and in turn, they had combusted. He slashed at the glitter Demons that ran at him, killed in mere seconds.

"Entertain me more! That's all you're worth for!" he laughed. "Since you must be trying your best, try your best to kill me and I'll do the same!"

A heavily armoured glitter Demon watched Subtract with amused eyes.

"Foolish mortal, if that is what you desire, I shall give you your death!" it roared and jumped off a platform. It was about to land on Subtract when a huge spear pierced into the Demon's shield, "Assault Spear – Burster!"

The spear had exploded, further damaging the armoured Demon's shield and armour. It landed twenty metres from Subtract, causing a small earthquake. Subtract saw two pink servants who then disappeared beside Apple.

"Subtract, you shouldn't try to fight alone!" said Apple as she walked up to him. "You could've gotten killed by that Demon back there!"

"Heh…killed? That Demon would've posed no threat," replied Subtract. His Auto-Cannons bleeped in agreement. The rest of the Elgang had caught up and surrounded the armoured Demon.

"It would've posed a threat," said Apple adamantly. "Your Cannons would not be able to obliterate the heavy Demon. He would have fallen on you and crushed you under its weight."

Subtract narrowed his eyes in slight annoyance before Elsword said, "Apple's right! In the Elgang, you don't fight alone. You fight alongside your teammates and that's us!"

The others nodded, agreeing with Elsword.

"Hmmm, if that's so, then where's Add?" pointed out Subtract.

"Oh…now that you say it," said Aisha. "He's not here."

"Keh, he must've gone ahead to take the strongest demon for himself! No fucking way am I going to let that happen!" yelled Subtract as his jets moved to his back. He propelled himself forwards, going deeper into the bridge.

"Apple, follow him!" commanded Eve.

"Right, Queen!" complied Apple and chased after Subtract.

* * *

Subtract made his jets go at full speed, flying over Demons and obstacles. He soon found a broken gate and flew inside, feeling the heat in the air grow intense. He looked ahead to see a plump-looking puppet waving his big, flaming matchstick around.

Seeing someone attacking it, he immediately charged forth.

"What's this, what's this? Another pickle to join the battle?" guffawed the puppet.

"Half Setting, Barrage Blaster on standby," commanded Subtract. "And battle? Haha, you're wrong. Judging from how I slaughtered your comrades, you're just an additional bonus."

"An additional bonus? You're a cheeky pickle! It has been decided; I will burn this pickle and you into a fine crisp!" it announced. "Puppet Bomb!"

It threw miniature puppets, exploding mid-air.

"You shouldn't be looking away from your opponent, you miserable fucker!" yelled out someone. "Quake Buster!"

The puppet was met by a heavy electrical force that shook through the ground. Whilst he was being pushed back by the impact, Subtract changed his blades to lances and pierced through the puppet. He saw Add on the other side, looking slightly surprised to see him. Using his jets, Subtract turned around to face the puppet who was laughing in a sinister matter.

"Idiotic pickles, indeed!" it cackled before falling to the ground. A red orb had exited through its hat as multiple puppets appeared on the bridge. These puppets ran around frantically as they giggled. Subtract had a feeling that this strange and harmless attack wasn't what it looked like. He spotted a red puppet running amongst the crowd and frowned.

Add seemed to pick up on it, too. He summoned two drones that had a circular blade attached to each.

"Phantom Seeker!" He threw the drones that cleaved through the puppets, hitting them multiple times. Eventually, the drones aimed at the red puppet and slashed it into pieces. The pyromaniac puppet revived again, seaming with frustration at having his plan failed. He lit his matchstick and was about to launch another attack when he heard a low-frequency sound behind him.

He noticed that Subtract was no longer in front of him, but behind him with a big cannon.

"Kehehe, ready for the final round? Or are you done already after pulling such a ridiculous joke?" laughed Subtract. "Barrage Blaster!"

The devastating discharge blew a hole through the puppet. Its pale, yellow eyes flickered momentarily before disappearing into black. What was left was just a circular string-sized puppet with an attached head.

Subtract, feeling somewhat tired, withdrew his cannons into half setting. He could detect no demon presences in the vicinity. He made the cannons disappear into storage, leaving only the blades attached to his arms. _Keh! After twenty minutes and I'm already tired? I'll need to readjust my weapons and adapt to them. How troublesome._

He gave Add a short look before walking past him. There was nothing to say to him and even if there were, he wouldn't say them. Well, it was only a matter of time before the two brothers talked.

"How's your arm?" questioned Add, but his tone was neutral.

"The arm that you forcibly stuck on as a replacement?" said Subtract. "Hmph, it functions properly but it's faulty on the long run."

It was a short conversation at that and Subtract had ended it promptly. He continued to leave, but was interrupted by another question. This question stopped Subtract completely. After all, it was shocking to hear a question like this be voiced by someone like Add.

"What have you been doing these past eight years?" It wasn't voiced in a neutral tone, but it actually sounded sincere. It was as if Add showed a sign of weakness. Subtract didn't seem to understand the question. His brain couldn't find the reason behind why it was asked in the first place. He turned around.

"That's none of your business." The Dark El started to fade away from Subtract's blades as he slowly turned back to normal.

* * *

Apple had arrived at where Subtract and Add were, but she stood at the gateway. It took her time to catch up to Subtract since he went at full speed ahead. She saw the two talking to each other and was about to call out to them but stopped.

She was just in hearing range of the two, so she could hear the words that came out of Subtract's mouth.

"Do you really think I would forgive you that easily? I'm still planning to kill you, but I'm only tagging along for now. Therefore, if you let your guard down even once, I will kill you without mercy. The only meaning of my existence is to end your life. That's the only thing I live for."

They were cold words spoken in the midst of flames with murderous intent diffusing through the air like static electricity. They obviously weren't words of a younger brother, they were the words of someone seeking vengeance.

* * *

**A/N: Tha'd be the end of the chapter! If ya like this chapter/fanfiction so far, please review/follow/favourite/share~!**

**Thankies to Asashin no Sogeki for addin' this fanfic to his/her favourite~! Welcome to this reality!**

**Replying to the reviews~**

ThiefofStealth: OwO I wasn't expecting caps~ but your comment was both surprising and amazin' to read (made meh cwy tears [good ones])! I'm glad ya like Subtract~!

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake: (Diabolical Lunatic and Ookami S)**

**OS: Hiiiii! Nice to meet you again, reader!  
****DL: Can I just fucking go home?  
OS: Language, DL!  
DL: Does it look like I care?!  
OS: DL...if you keep being rude like that, the reader might cry.  
DL: ...  
OS: =w= If ya stay here, I'll give you a chocolate chip cookie!  
DL: I am not a freaking child! Particle Acc-  
OS: Ah, wait! Sorry! QAQ! *throws cookies everywhere* Run!**


	18. Passing By Guilt

**A/N: I advise ya to read the A/N as there might be some important notices owo. Also, next week I'm going to camp so I won't really be able to work on chapters for nearly a whole week. Nonetheless, I'll just find a way... Anyways, enjoy the new (longer) chapter~!**

* * *

When Subtract came near the gate, Apple immediately hid behind it as Subtract passed her by. She didn't know why she was hiding when she was supposed to be following Subtract. Maybe it was because when she saw Subtract, he had looked untouchable.

Although Apple knew almost nothing about Subtract, she felt obligated to prevent his goals from succeeding. With the memories of a shuddering cry, she silently vowed to stop Subtract from committing an irreversible mistake.

She heard someone come close.

"I know you're hiding there so you might as well come out," it sounded almost like a growl. Apple walked out into the gateway, somewhat surprising Add.

"I was told to follow Subtract by Eve. I apologise for having eavesdropped on the conversation between Subtract and you, it really was not my intention…" she explained, trailing off. "Just, what happened between you two?"

"…" Add stayed silent and walked off, not answering Apple's question. Apple didn't press the situation further and followed him as they walked back to the Elgang.

* * *

The Elgang were at the other end of the bridge, resting as they waited for the other three to return. They planned to rendezvous with the Velder garrison back at Velder afterwards. Rena was the first one to see Subtract walking towards them. His attire had returned to normal as his weapons were back in storage.

"Where's Apple and Add?" she asked.

Subtract gave her a short look before answering, "They're still coming."

He sat on three of his Operators and opened up a screen. He ignored the presence of the Elgang as he performed a check on his right arm. With the equipment he had in his storage, he performed several maintenance and improvements.

"Hmm, are you an engineer, too, Subtract?" questioned Aisha.

"I am, what about it?" he replied in an emotionless tone._ He really seems like a machine_, thought Aisha. To be honest, the Elgang didn't know what to think about Subtract. It came as a total surprise to hear that Add had a younger sibling as he never talked about his past in the first place. After fighting alongside him—if you could call it that—they could see the similarity between the two.

Both were anti-social, preferring not to speak to others or ignore their existence altogether. They were both cold and solitary, not revealing any information on their past. Subtract was definitely powerful, seeing how he took on the whole Elgang and that was not an easy task to do.

To Elsword and Raven who were mainly the ones who attacked him, they had a feeling that he was holding back. It was a scary thought to entertain if he could be even more powerful than he was in that fight.

Raven was especially curious about Subtract's right arm. It was obviously Nasod, although modified. It wasn't unreasonable to think that Subtract may have been experimented upon. He wanted to ask, but it would've been rude. He was a polite person after all.

So for now, Subtract was a completely introverted person who is strong and fights undeniably well.

What Subtract thought of them, wasn't much. He honestly didn't care about what they did, what their intentions were, or anything about them. He just knew that they were good opponents to fight, but he wasn't interested in fighting them either. He only had one goal and travelling along with the Elgang just made it easier to complete.

"I wonder how Apple is doing so far," Rena said absent-mindedly.

Subtract slightly frowned. He didn't know what to make of Apple. She was a Nasod from the Ancient Nasod civilisation. She was less robotic than what he would've thought she'd be. For some reason, he found it a little hard to ignore her. Apple seemed more of a human being, or that could've been his imagination.

"Oh, they're here!" pointed out Aisha.

Subtract looked up from his maintenance screen and saw the two coming back. Apple seemed to be walking faster towards Subtract's direction. He slightly frowned, wondering now why she was one of the last two to come back.

"Hey, Subtract," she greeted and sat down beside him. He went back to looking at his screen, but she continued looking at him. She glanced at his arm and pointed out, "Don't you think you'll be putting a further strain on your arm if you use that setting?"

He gazed up as she sat closer.

"If you put this configuration in, it'll lessen the weight…here," she said. She lifted Subtract's arm onto her lap and pulled over the maintenance screen from his side.

He was about to protest, but she had already finished.

"There."

Subtract was fairly surprised, seeing how his arm felt lighter. He pulled his arm back quick.

"So, where's my thank you?" she asked. Her tone was slightly playful and it was easy to spot.

He attempted to ignore her again, but she came closer and looked into his eyes. She was harder to ignore this time and it was a puzzling feeling.

"Thanks," he muttered. She gave a victorious smile.

"Hoh, so even you can be polite, huh, Subtract?" said Elesis, grinning.

"Leave me alone," he grumbled.

"Is everyone here? Alright, we can go on towards Velder now and wait for the Velder Garrison to follow!" announced Elsword.

Subtract stood up and his Operators followed behind him.

* * *

"Hm, wait, Subtract, do you have dynamos, too?" asked Elsword.

"Don't tell me you didn't see those things behind him?" said Aisha. Elsword frowned.

"No?"

"You're more of a musclehead than I thought, Elbaka."

"Wha—baka? Is that from another language, or something?"

"It means idiot, Elbaka!"

The two began bickering, but Rena picked up the previous question and asked it again. Subtract's Operators seemed similar to Add's Dynamos after all. She pointed out the similarity whilst asking.

"These aren't Dynamos," answered Subtract. "They're Operators and I don't use them for battle exactly. They just assist me, that's all."

"That's true…you do attack with different weapons after all," said Rena, nodding. "Also, how did you get your Nasod Arm?"

Raven appeared to be listening closely, seeing how he was curious. Subtract didn't respond, feeling a slight headache. He had this Nasod Arm for a while, or the previous one anyway. It was an early experiment that nearly took Subtract's life. The amount of blood loss from the amputated arm was horrendous, there were implants that were forcefully injected into the amputated area, and without much anaesthetic to begin with, too. The ringing in his ears increased gradually the more he thought about it.

He didn't answer the question.

"Although, Add did change it. Did you make the previous arm, then?"

"I…I didn't make it," he muttered. "I wasn't the one who…put it on, too."

Apple looked closer, seeing Subtract's chest rise and fall in an irregular pattern. _Breathing rate has abnormally increased, is he hyperventilating? _thought Apple.

"I wasn't the one who did it…" His eyesight turned blurry and he began to feel numb. Memory flashes of a mechanized saw cutting into his flesh as he remained bound to the table flickered in his head. The teeth of the saw pulling back and forth, ripping through his veins and muscles. He could feel every bit of it. The heavy cutting sound would resound within his ears with blood splattering over him and onto the floor. Laughter could be heard. The Doctor wouldn't stop smiling, he wouldn't stop laughing, he wouldn't stop enjoying every bit of Subtract's torment.

Subtract gritted his teeth in pain as his head was throbbing heavily.

Apple was about to stop Rena from asking any more questions, but instead, Add stood in.

"Oi, elf, you should back off with the questions," he pointed out.

Rena took the hint, seeing Subtract breathe heavily while swaying slightly.

"I'm so sorry, Subtract, I didn't mean to…" started Rena.

"If you know that, then don't ask…any stupid questions," he interrupted. He gripped his right arm, feeling a weak electric field being released from it.

"You should probably sit down for a bit, Subtract," advised Apple. "You're going to fall at this rate."

Subtract ignored Apple's advice and continued walking. His Operators whirled around his legs as if stabilizing his bent pose.

Apple slowed down a little to thank Add for what he did.

"Don't get me wrong. It was just that the elf was being loud," lied Add. It was an obvious lie to point out, seeing how Elsword and Aisha were being twice as louder. _Speaking of loud_…he sent a sharp glare at the two who then stopped bickering for a moment.

"What?" said Elsword.

"Hmph, muscleheads should just remain silent," he commented. Elsword was about to request for a fight before Aisha wacked his head and called him, Elbaka, yet again.

He glanced at Subtract who was still swaying. To be honest, he didn't very much care for the death threat. He wasn't easy to kill, or to fight anyway. However, there was an ever-present guilt within his mind ever since eight years ago. He had abandoned him to the Slave Trader Camp and whatever happened there, it was most likely torture.

Add may be an uncaring, cold and power-hungry teenager, but even he felt regret. Even though, Subtract stood in front of him completely changed, Subtract was still a link to the past and the only family he has left.

* * *

**A/N: And that'd be the end of the 18th Chapter~! If you like the fanfiction/chapter so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Some of you may have noticed that the chapters may have been a bit messed up, eg. a chapter containing the wrong content. That was because I was editing the story...very late at night. My delusional mind be tripping me! ;w; Also, *ducks from any romance critics* U-um, hai, this fanfiction has a Subtract x Apple pairing. **

**And thank you to Lixious for adding this fanfiction to his/her favourites~!**

**Replying to the reviews ~=w=~**

**Nagisaa-san: ;w; Yeah, thanks for pointing them out. *gives a cookie***

**ThiefofStealth: Thankies~! Subtract may not say it, but he be thanking you, too. owo I try to do my best at the fighting scenes since I'm not very experienced in them, but thank you for the comment~**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake~!**

**OS: Phew, Hope Bridge was literally an inferno. It possibly could've caused global warming, them careless demons!  
DL: Huuh, are you stupid? There wouldn't be global warming just from that! And plus...  
OS: ;-; Hmm? ('M not stupid...)  
DL: You dodged my attack last time, did you think I'd let you off the hook?  
OS: B-but, anyone would've dodged!  
DL: Just stand still and let me blast you to high heavens!  
OS: WAI IS IT ALWAYS MEE! *throws cookie confetti and dashes off*  
DL: Conqueror!  
OS: QAQ Wa-waaah!**


	19. Burnt in Flames

The Elgang arrived at Velder, or rather the outskirts of it. It looked the same as always, a village that remained intact whilst its kingdom was set ablaze and infested with demons.

The Elgang had rested there and kept a watch-out for the Velder Garrison while planning for the next battle. Hanna and Praus served them food and water, in case they needed them. They accepted the food gratefully as Hanna and Praus went back to work.

Several Velder residents and refugees were talking in groups. Some were talking happily amongst themselves, happy to be safe from the demon attacks. While others were either in tears, or in mourn. Not all citizens were evacuated, or rescued safely. Some of them have lost their loved ones simply because they had to leave them behind. If they didn't, they, too, would be dead.

"This is terrible," commented Aisha. "They've lost too much."

"And that's why, it's our duty to ensure they don't lose anymore people precious to them," said Elesis. "We're here to lighten the load on Velder."

"I hope we can do so soon. I heard from Vanessa that there are still citizens in Commercial Area 1. I guess that's where we're going to next," said Aisha.

Meanwhile, Subtract was away from the Elgang group at the same distance as Add. He was idly watching the sky, almost as if he studying it. In Henir's Time and Space, there was no such thing as a 'sky'. When in a Henir room, it looks like the place was naturally lit up by the sun, or whatever lit up the room in the first place. However, if you look up, you'd see nothing but a dark sky and a huge cube floating in it. Subtract guessed the the cube was covered in Illusion-type Mana. He had seen pictures of the sky, but it wasn't as if he was interested in it anymore. With a sigh, he looked down and saw something in the distance.

His Nasod Eye zoomed in on the village's gateway, seeing an armoured Garrison arriving.

"Isn't that the Velder Garrison?" he pointed out.

The Elgang looked at him almost confused before looking at the same direction Subtract was looking at. The Garrison quickly became apparent as Vanessa the Centurion was leading them. Her light blue hair stood out.

"You're right, but how'd you see them from that distance?" asked Elsword.

Subtract pointed to his left eye, "I can zoom in with this eye."

"Ooh, is that magic, or something?"

"No, it's an artificial eye."

"Artificial? You mean…it's Nasod like your arm, too?"

Subtract didn't answer his question.

"Oh, you guys have already arrived?" it was Vanessa. Her soldiers were resting on the side, some tending to their own wounds.

With a hand covering his left eye, he thought bitterly, _a goodbye present from the Doctor himself._

* * *

The Elgang sat around Vanessa who began to explain the mission. She had first explained the fact that the Palace Entrance and the Burning Hope Bridge was just the beginning.

Grail, the Velder's Alchemist, asked, "Centurion Vanessa, how goes the evacuation at Commercial Area 1?"

"Our army has already entered the area and are working on evacuating any remaining citizens and refugees," she explained, but then sighed heavily. "It's definitely not going too well. I have received reports of citizens and refugees getting killed by a certain demon. He goes by the name, Spriggan."

She turned to the Elgang with a solemn look on her face.

"Please, I ask of you to assist with the evacuation. Save any citizens and refugees that still remain and help our army with their mission. I advise you to not let any of them encounter Spriggan. He is an armoured, tiny Demon Knight who holds no mercy to living beings that are not Demons. I don't know how many innocent lives we've lost to him, even our soldiers couldn't handle his strength," she explained.

"You can trust us on the mission. We won't let anyone die anymore," said Elsword bravely.

Vanessa gave him a tired smile before frowning slightly.

"It's strange, though, I feel as if there's a weird edge to the Demon's actions. When they first invaded Velder, they just slaughtered anyone they saw blindly but now…it's like they're being strategic. There's something strange about this pattern and I can't help but feel a bad premonition…"

"You're probably just imagining it, Vanessa. I'm sure that we will successfully evacuate everyone out of Commercial Area 1," reassured Noel. "Although, it is reasonable to be cautious about this. If the Demons are planning something else, we might have to take some precautions."

"I will join you and your gang after my garrison rests. We'll help evacuating the refugees and citizens,"said Vanessa.

"Right, then let's get going, guys!" said Elsword. He started walking when he suddenly stopped and turned around. "So, where's Commercial Area 1 anyway?"

Aisha, Rena, Raven, Ara and Elesis facepalmed. Add and Eve shook their heads, while Subtract just rolled his eyes. _People can't be this stupid, can they? Or does he get worse from here?_

* * *

Commercial Area 1 was worse than the Hope Bridge. It was covered in flames as buildings crumbled in the distance. The presence of evil saturated the air like poison, giving off a polluted feel.

"Alright, everybody knows what they're doing? We're going to take down any nearby demons and save any people we see. If we encounter Spriggan, we'll take him down before he gets his hands on any innocent lives," said Elesis. She unsheathed her sword and fire sparks began to emanate from it.

Elsword and Raven unsheathed their swords also, spotting the first demons ahead. Ara and Aisha readied their weapons, thinking up of moves to use. Add and Eve prepared their drones.

"Open, Operator Artillery!" commanded Subtract. His clothes changed as screen displays appeared around him. "Open, OP – Annex."

He was once again equipped with his blades and guns. Using his Nasod Eye to scan ahead, he dashed forwards like last time, going pass a collapsing building and landed on the ground. Barricades were directly in front of him and he could see snipers behind them, aiming their bows upwards.

"Impaler Rain!"

A wide drone shot out above the sniper horde, spotting the shield-wearing demons behind them. It let out a rain of spears onto them, stabbing violently through their flesh without mercy. The remaining spears broke down the barricades before the spears disappeared all at once.

Before he could proceed forth, he heard people behind him. With a single glance, he saw the Elgang catching up behind him.

"We won't let you have all the fun, Subtract!" The whole Elgang was beside him, keeping up with his fast pace.

"Tch, you'll just be in the way," he grumbled.

"Hm? Then, we'll prove to you how much that's not true!" said Elsword, grinning. He pulled his sword in front of him and yelled, "Armageddon Blade!" A huge blade with colours of fire extended from his sword. Elsword flashed red as he jumped into the air.

"Rolling Smash!" Elsword rolled forth extremely fast into the enemy, cutting through them with his blade. His wide blade allowed him to take most of the Demons' front line. More demons rushed forth, along with spirits and elf sentinels.

The Elgang charged into them, executing moves to eliminate the Demons. Raven gathered some of the Demons' attention to himself and unleashed a powerful force underground. The ground begun to rumble before explosions rose up from it, catching the Demons in its destruction, "Giga Prominence!"

Rena dived into the midst of a horde, performing a Spinning Kick into a small group. She gave a short glance around her to see the Elgang fighting rather closely. She smiled and summoned a Flaring Fairy, "Airelinna – Sylph!"

The spirit released a circle-shaped aura, increasing the Elgang's strength and speed. Subtract was slightly surprised at their progress. They bursted through hordes of Demons without much trouble. Although, it was handy, it gave Subtract little space to mow down the Demons himself.

As they moved forth, eliminating any Demons in their way. Subtract still remained somewhat ahead, fighting groups of Demons by himself. Since most of the Glitters were drawn to the Elgang, he handled the Commanders who stood behind the hordes.

"Lunatic Ripper!" Thrown blades tore through the armour of the Commanders, immobilizing them with excruciating pain. Subtract finished them off by stabbing into their heads, or shooting it off. He frowned slightly. _These demons…seem a bit too easy. They're not attacking us with their full power. Hmph, I don't like this silly crap that they're pulling. Other then that, I have a feeling we're being watched…_

He gave out a sigh and watched the Elgang gradually catch up. He had noticed that Add wasn't participating in the battle that much. To him, it looked like he was observing the others while battling isolated groups.

"They really are alike, in a way," said Aisha as she casted fireballs at the Blood Eaters nearby.

"You've said it," replied Elesis. "They don't fight alongside us very closely, right, Eve?"

"I don't see what the problem is. They are still fighting the Demons we are supposed to fight. Although, one of them isn't putting much effort…" started Eve. She swiftly summoned Oberon from the ground as several shielded Glitter Demons charged at her. Oberon sliced them upwards and cut them down, "Sonic Wave!"

"It's a factor that remains slightly troubling," she finished.

"Well, enough chit-chat for now—wait, what's Subtract doing?" pointed out Elesis. Subtract was standing idly, waiting for the jets that had moved to his legs to charge up. They grew in size, parts summoned from air attached itself to them. Without so much of a glance, he flew upwards and left the area.

* * *

**A/N: Hello~another end to another chapter! If you like this fanfiction/chapter so far, review/favourite/follow/share~owo **

**And...and...we've reached f-four thousand and over views! This goes beyond cookies...shall we move on to the cakes, the main course?!**

**Thanks to Techno-chan and YukinoHoshi for adding this fanfic to his/her follows~! And thanks to Keiyaku Sogeki for adding this fanfic to his/her favourites~be you related to Asashin no Sogeki? o-o**

**Replying to a review~**

**Nagisaa-chan: You are welcome... *vanishes into thin air***

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake:  
**

**OS: *pants* Uwaaa~when will there ever be a break?  
DL: When you die, of course.  
OS: .-. That sounds very reassuring. Anyways, the heat just doesn't disappear in Velder~  
DL: Are you-  
OS: Then again, these demons are putting everything on fire. Might as well cook demon meat for dinner.  
DL: .-.  
OS: What? It's called recycling mob corpses. :) Don't forget to take care of leftover food~!  
DL: Just, no. Fucking unhygienic.  
OS: T.T Again, with the language! Ah well, I dun care no more q.q**


	20. And Demons Fall

**Sorry to have kept you guys waiting, here's the new chapter~!**

* * *

"Where did he go?!" questioned Elsword who just noticed. Subtract had left them behind without any explanation.

"I'm not sure, he just flew over the buildings without a single look," answered Elesis. "Anyways, we don't have enough time discussing Subtract's reason for leaving. The Demons have gathered up again so let's deal with them first!"

Apple looked worriedly at the spot where Subtract just left. Shaking her head, she turned her attention to the new horde of Demons. They were many in numbers, almost never-ceasing.

"Apple, watch out!" called out Aisha. "Mana Shield!" A blue aura surrounded Aisha as she ran out in front of Apple, deflecting a bottle of chemicals.

"These Alchemists are starting to get on my nerves," she growled. She turned to Apple, "Focus on the battle, Apple. We'll find Subtract some way, or another."

"R-right, sorry," said Apple. She looked ahead with a determined looked on her face.

"Persephone, Charon!" she called out. Two pink-clothed Nasod servants appeared beside her as she started shouting out commands.

* * *

Subtract landed on a roof platform, searching around with an annoyed expression. The feeling of being watched didn't disappear, but he could tell he was closer. The presence that he had been chasing stopped running and he had a feeling he knew who it was.

"Oi, whoever you are, reveal yourself," he commanded. Only the crackling of flames answered. The presence definitely stopped running. It was cornered in this area where it was surrounded by burning buildings. He grinned widely.

"You know there's no way of escaping me. So why don't you put down the retarded game of hide and seek, hm?" he said. "I don't like sneaky shitheads who can't even properly hide themselves. It pisses me off to no end."

The flames nearby started to waver as an invisible breeze coursed through the area. A white energy started to envelop his blades, flowing violently around him.

"Attribute Enhancement: Wind El, Emotion Level confirmed: Annoyance."

"Tch, I thought my invisibility potion would've definitely worked! Hmph, I'll have to readjust the formula later. I guess I'll deal with you, pesky human. I must thank you for being a worthy test subject by giving you a painful death!" A pair of red goggles appeared from where the voice came from. It revealed a head covered in dark grey skin with three white spikes attached to it. Giggling loudly, it appeared as a bigger version of a Glitter Alchemist.

Subtract was surprised. He recognised this Glitter Demon and his grin widened.

"Sullen Joaquin, huh? Hahaha…how perfect. Nice to fucking meet you again, did you want to die once more?" laughed Subtract. Sullen frowned at the words.

"What are you talking about, insignificant experiment? I've never met you," said Sullen. Then again, there was this nagging feeling that what Subtract said was true. He might've seen this human before and he didn't like the feeling.

Within an instant, Subtract appeared behind Sullen and stabbed his back.

"Gaahk! How dare you stab me from behind, human! Your tactic is awfully disgusting!" bellowed Sullen. He shook Subtract off into the air, who only flew in front of him in response.

"You've become too easy, Sullen, too fucking easy!" remarked Subtract, mockingly. "Well, let's just enjoy this reunion for now while I tear you to pieces!"

* * *

(Back to the Elgang~)

They were progressing pretty fast, despite the ridiculous amount of Glitter Demons. The heat around them had increased as they went deeper into the town. So far, no citizens were spotted or any of the Velder Garrison soldiers. It was a worrying factor. The very possibility that the Glitter Demons have eliminated them might as well be high.

Still, progress brings hope. Most of the citizens may have already been evacuated. Thinking this, slowed their progress a bit.

"Are you guys actually slowing down? There's still plenty fucking more to go!" yelled Add, having gotten tired of observing the Elgang.

He pulled out in front of them and turned to the Glitter Demons still appearing. His Dynamos flew behind him as he aimed at the mobs of Demon as a holographic display appeared around him.

"Panzer Buster!" A bright red energy blasted towards the mob, destroying the nearest ones in its range. The further ones were blown away and rendered weak by the immense blast.

"You don't need to tell us that! We weren't slowing down!" yelled back Elsword. He launched himself against the Sentinels that were sneaking in arrow attacks at them. The Elgang regained their battle composure and fought harder. The amount of Glitter Demons were being significantly thinned down, but there was an ominous presence ahead.

Aisha was staying still near the front as she was gathering mana. They had all reached a part where only Sentinels and Kenaz fairies remained. Just as the Kenaz fairies started shooting fire from their palms. Aisha thrust her wand forth and unleashed pressurized water balls from it, "Water Cannon!"

The water balls collided into the Kenaz fairies and put out the flames around them.

"Revolver Cannon," said Raven, pulling out his arm in front. "Original Piercing Bomb!"

Several fire bombs were shot from his Nasod Arm, piercing through the Sentinels and Kenaz fairies. This caused the Kenaz to explode, damaging the Sentinels who couldn't run in time.

Rena unsheathed her Erendil blade and flashed past them, slicing through the Sentinels' vital organs, "Fatality!" (cough cough, Mortal Kombat-)

"Good job, guys, I think we're nearing the end of the town," said Raven. He had memorized the map beforehand, knowing that they've passed through most of the main streets.

"That presence won't disappear though," pointed out Ara worriedly. "It might be Spriggan."

"It certainly doesn't feel like the other Demons. It's of a higher rank and the only Demon we've been notified of, is Spriggan," confirmed Eun. "It feels compressed somewhat. Like a strong mass of hatred kept in a small container."

"Well, if it's small, it's gotta be easier to beat, right?" said Elsword. His head was met with a light wack of a wand.

"Elbaka, the size doesn't matter! Vanessa said it killed many Velder soldiers and innocent people. It's definitely strong," remarked Aisha.

"Okay, okay, you don't have to keep hitting my head," responded Elsword. "I'm gonna get small if you keep doing that."

"Subtract doesn't seem to be around this area," muttered Apple.

"He is near," stated Eve. "My drones can sense his heat signature nearby."

"Hoh, your drones have that kind of function, too, Eve?" questioned Add.

"Focus on the mission, Add," she responded, "…and yes, they do."

The Elgang arrived at a wooden gate, which they took down as it was locked. Ahead was a closed off court, lit by flames above. Something stood in the middle of the court, not moving. It was covered in a silver armour and wore a blazing orange scarf. It wielded a small sword that it rested its hands on, as it was embedded in the ground.

When they entered the court, the armoured Demon still didn't move from its spot. The Elgang proceeded to surround it.

The Demon slightly raised its head, metal bearings clinking in response. There were ten eye holes in its visor, emanating an eerily blue glow.

"Heheh…do you human waste wish to die~?" it sang. The voice was a mix of a child's and a Demon. A shadowy aura escaped the armour, raising in the air to form a dark Demon. "I am Spriggan and all humans in my sight, shall meet my wrath!"

The shadow-formed Spriggan let out a childish laugh as it returned to inside of the armour.

* * *

**A/N: And the end to the 20th chapter! Marks another chapter milestone. If ya enjoyed this fanfiction, please review/favourite/follow/share~**

**And thank you to Shinomiya Izuna for adding this fanfic to his/her follow~! Welcome to this twisted reality =w=**

**Replying to a review:**

Nagisaa-san: And where he goes, will there be gore~be prepared owo

**Very Half-Assed Omake - **

**OS: Phew, these past days have been stressful =w= Running from attacks, doing school tests-  
DL: Complaining isn't going to get your half-eaten brain anywhere.  
OS: And just 'cause I watched all of Walking Dead's Game Season 1, doesn't mean my brain got eat. ;w;  
DL: How long are you going to keep up the complaining anyway?  
OS: ;w; We people got harsh lives y'know? Oh well, since DL is playing friendly again...  
DL: Oi-!  
OS: We'll see ya guys in the next chapter releases!**


	21. To Kill a Pest

**READ PLEASE vvv (And replies to "reviews" down below, just sayin')**

**Hello, guys~! It's been a long couple of weeks (well, for me) and I finally updated .-. dun kill meh but...**

**For the next update, it might take a little longer because I have EXAMS next week. Yep, exams. The age of the dreaded exams have finally arrived for me. Also, I'm working on a new Elsword Fanfiction so here's a...blurb for it.**

**-She is, Forsaken-**

**She watched. She watched them kill her mother and she was going to be next. Fateful, or not, she was able to escape from being killed. Just as the pursuers had caught up, she fell down a hole and into a place she would never leave for nine years, in complete isolation. As if life didn't torment her enough.**

* * *

"Stop running, Sullen!" shouted Subtract, chasing the Alchemist down.

"Running? I wouldn't dream of it!" responded Sullen angrily. He threw black powder around himself when Subtract came near. "Combustion!"

Sullen set fire to the powder around him, causing it to flare up and explode. Subtract pulled up Motion Blocker just in time to be shielded from the explosion. _Time to step things up. This is taking too long._

"OP-Annex - Combination Sequence!" shouted Subtract.

"Combination Sequence, loaded. Beginning Safety Event."

On Subtract's Operator-formed arm, it opened slightly to reveal small gun barrels.

"Bullets loaded. Event, begin." Light blue bullets shot out of the barrels and exploded mid-air in front of Sullen.

"Ack! You incompetent..." Sullen was covered in the blue fumes the explosions emitted, blocking his eye vision. His eye vision was completely covered as he couldn't see anything for several moments. "Is this bloody fool thinking some smoke will defend him?! Hah!"

Sullen threw black powder around him again and lit it on fire, using the explosion to blow away the fumes.

Sullen could hear sounds of mechanical parts clicking in place. He used his goggles to focus ahead of him and he saw Subtract hovering slightly above ground.

His arms were in the shape of two cannons with blades attached inside it. His arms were pure black and it started to expand. Turquoise light lined the cannon in a futuristic pattern. Two white bands attached itself to the rim of the cannon, holding several holes in it.

The jets on his legs had grown wider in size and its orange-blue flame was replaced with a transparent blue. It was impossible to see the flames from afar and even upclose, it was barely visible.

Subtract held his right arm in front, "Pulse Impact!"

The blades retracted instantly to the side and several powerful oscillations were released at Sullen. His surroundings began to crumble as Sullen's build disallowed him from dodging in time.

"A nonsensical series of sound waves? Hah! You think this will affect me?" Sullen took a potion flask out and drank it. The oscillations gradually turned brighter, passing harmlessly through Sullen. "Eat this! Thunderstorm!"

Purple clouds began to appear in the air with an ominous thundering.

"That would've got me years ago," said Subtract. "Kehaha…too bad. Motion Blocker, Dome!"

Just as the thunderbolts began to rain down on Subtract, the instantly formed barrier deflected it.

Subtract transformed his right arm back to normal. As he opened up his hand, five white lines traced along from the palm to the tip of the fingers. He placed them on top of where his heart is.

"Cardiac Overtime," he commanded. A processing sound could be heard before a robotic sound was heard. The Thunderstorm Sullen cast disappeared as they reached their limit. As a result, Sullen turned smaller. Something is off, thought Sullen. The barrier around Subtract disappeared. "Time to finish this with a blast."

The Operators on his left arm detached and relocated on his back, adding to the number of jets as they begun firing up. His right arm turned back to the Combination Sequence form again, but only showed the cannon counterpart. A handle was released from its side from which Subtract grabbed onto.

"Calamity…" Three pulse rings were being emitted from the cannon as a dark blue force was slowly climbing its way through them. "Wave!"

The jets on Subtract were set to maximum as he charged forward at Sullen who just returned to normal. The three pulse rings shot out towards Sullen, trapping him inside as he was met with a desolating force. He could immediately feel it digging into his flesh, the scalding fury becoming a devouring beast. He felt his back met with the burning buildings behind and the feel of his bones shattering from the impact.

_I, the Great Glitter Demon Alchemist, Sullen Joaquin, will die here?! You must be kidding me!_ He thought. Then, he looked into the eyes of Subtract who was surrounded by the dark blue force, guarding him from the wind velocity. Then, he understood. _I have met this human before. In another time, in another dimension…_

"Kahahahaha…it doesn't matter if you have an ounce of remembrance, Sullen. Sadly, this is the last time you'll die by my hands," laughed Subtract. "In the end, you never could grant your own wish. You will forever be fucking pitiful, like the rest of your kind."

* * *

The demon knight, known as Spriggan, was fighting against the Elgang. So far, he was losing against them. They were overwhelming him by brute force as he tried to fend off their attacks with nimble defence.

"How's that, Spriggan? Not so tough now, are you?" taunted Elsword as he brought down his sword onto him.

"Hah! Humans getting arrogant? Then, I'll start the endgame!" yelled Spriggan. "Shadow Trap Spiker!"

Numerous shadows escaped Spriggan's armour and ensnared the Elgang, not letting any of them dodge in time.

"Oi, that's a dirty trick!" commented Aisha, disgusted. "I can't even move!"

"Shadow Embrace!" Spriggan summoned a dark black hole above him, which made a low whistling sound throughout the court. They immediately felt cold, as if the black hole was sucking in all the heat in the area. Even if there was fire blazing not far above, it felt like the court was covered in ice. Something ominous could be felt.

"This is bad! He's going to show his true form! If he does, we won't survive this!" shouted Eun.

"I can't even move my hands! Damn it, if I could, I'd dispel this low-grade entanglement in an instant!" yelled Aisha.

"It's over humans, Spriggan has won!" he laughed.

Just as Spriggan's true form was about to appear, the wall behind Spriggan was smashed through. A burning, bulky body crashed into the black hole and shattered it.

"W-wha?! Who dares interrupt my endgame?!" bellowed Spriggan angrily. The body that crashed through the black hole landed several metres in front of Spriggan in a billowing grey smoke. Subtract stood on top of the corpse of Sullen Joaquin and turned around to see an irritated Spriggan glare back.

"Who the heck are you, impudent human being?!" questioned Spriggan.

"Who am I? Why the hell should I answer you, midget?" responded Subtract.

"Subtract!" said Apple, surprised. He turned his attention to the Elgang around Spriggan and him, all trapped by a black shadow. He narrowed his eyes, realising the situation.

"Help cut these ties off!" called out Raven.

"No, you don't!" Spriggan charged at Subtract who looked back.

"Force Command – Enclosed Field," commanded Subtract. Spriggan was caught inside a dimensional box, which pissed him off further. He started to make a black hole within the box, causing the box to begin shattering. Subtract tched and covered his right eye momentarily before revealing a yellow eye.

"Time Alchemy – Reverse Continuation!" The barrier began to repair itself, negating the black hole Spriggan was making. Without wasting time, Subtract's right arm extended a blade forward. He used his jets to blink towards the gang, freeing them one by one.

"Thank you, Subtract," said Elesis. He only nodded in response before he felt something strange. His Nasod Heart was throbbing at a constant fast rate due to Cardiac Overtime, but it was gradually increasing. All of a sudden, he felt an incredibly sharp pain in his Nasod Heart and he collapsed onto the ground. His weapons returned to normal as his Operators floated above him.

"Subtract?!" said Rena worriedly. Elsword, Raven and Elesis rushed towards Spriggan as the barrier shattered completely. The others rushed to Subtract's side and flipped him over. He was unconscious.

"What's wrong with him? Eun, can you sense anything?" asked Ara.

"I'm not an expert in that area, Ara, but I can tell that he is in a state of fatigue," replied Eun. "I felt as if his heart was beating way too fast before he collapsed, though. This is worrisome."

Apple kneeled down besides Subtract and tried to access his Status Screen. She figured she could find what was wrong through his Operators, but they denied Apple access. She was faced with a screen reading, "Unauthorized Access. Access Requirement: Password. Enter password: …"

"Password? He put a password onto his Status?" muttered Apple.

"Move, you're in the way," said Add as he pulled the Status window over to his side. He quickly typed in the password into the screen, granting access. The Status screen beeped before opening up Subtract's status which read, "Due to Cardiac Overtime's First Release, Nasod Heart underwent excessive stress from being overworked too fast. As a precaution, Nasod Heart has abruptly reverted back to normal heart rate. This caused him to be rendered unconscious from the exhaustion."

"He just overworked himself basically?" questioned Rena. "He put his heart on overtime…"

"Seriously, what is this idiot thinking? He ran out for no reason and he comes back and saves us. Just to overwork himself," sighed Apple.

"I couldn't agree further. I suspect, though, he was chasing after that," pointed Eve. The bulky corpse was still there and a pair of white goggles could be seen. It was mostly unrecognisable from its charred skin.

"Well, he'll recover soon, right?" asked Aisha.

"See for yourself," Add pointed to the screen. He stood up.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"What do you think? Those idiots are stealing all the fun!"

"Arrogant humans! The Demon Knight won't stand for this!" bellowed Spriggan, stomping angrily. "The Demons will rule this realm, I won't let you insignificant mortals stop us!"

"Like a child having a tantrum," commented Raven. He jumped in the air and unleashed fire bombs at Spriggan, which exploded in a consecutive row, "Harpoon Spear!"

"Gah!" Spriggan was caught in the explosion. His armour started to crack.

Elesis charged in and swung at him heavily, beginning spinning attacks that cracked his helmet. At the last blow, he was launched away and into the air.

"Particle Accelerator!" Spriggan was met with a powerful energy force behind him, fatally damaging him. He fell onto the ground, having suffered numerous heavy wounds. There was no mana residing within his beaten body, not even any energy. All there was left was an empty shell, containing a black mass of shadows.

"Spriggan is no more," announced Eun. "There is no sign of his presence."

"Well, should we go looking for the Velder Garrison?" questioned Rena. "Since Subtract's unconscious."

"Sounds like a good idea," said Apple.

"So, who's gonna carry him?" asked Elsword.

"Persephone, Charon." The pink Nasod servants appeared next to her, awaiting commands. "Carry Subtract."

They both bowed before proceeding the lift Subtract off the ground, carrying him carefully.

"I guess that solves that," said Elesis. "Let's get going then."

* * *

**A/N: And thaaat brings an end to le chapter~! If you liked this chapter, or this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Also She is, Forsaken will come out next week I just gotta finish the cover (might not colour it).**

**Thank you to Mondai Sogeki for adding this fanfiction to his/her favourites :)**

**Replyin' to the reviews:  
**

**ThiefofStealth: Thanks again ^~^! And yes, you spelled Spriggan right =w= Yep, I've watched the whole MKX playthrough...also the whole fatalities, x-rays and brutalities all in one vid~!**

**GirlyTurtle: It says so below the fanfic's description now (I think). Yep, it's an Apple x Subtract pairing. **

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake:  
OS: The EXAMS! THEY BURN!  
DL: Wtf are you talking about?  
OS: Don'tcha know? It's the age of the exams .-. the oncoming storm (coughcough, Doctor, call a Doctor)  
DL: Pffft. They span for about two weeks right?  
OS: They do indeed. So, readers, brace yourself for the next chapter and I ain't gonna spoil. Also, check out the new fanfiction that will be uploaded next week, or this week :)**


	22. And It Torments

**A/N: WOO! Early update~ *claps imaginary hand/s***

**Also, thank you to the following for adding Half-Assed Reality to their follows/favourites: Defloweredbody, Sinojin, The Grimm Fate and catpupille. I also "reply" to reviews in the A/N at the end~! Just putting that out there~**

* * *

Subtract found himself in a cold, damp room. He was squatting in the corner, gritting his teeth against the immense pain in his limbs. On the ceiling was a dull ceiling light, on the ground was a small puddle of his own blood. Two metal rods had been stabbed through his hand and feet, joining them together. Even the smallest movement created an excruciating amount of pain.

He felt empty. Looking outside the cage door, he saw others in the same position as him. The corridor of rooms were filled with slaves awaiting punishment. The punishments lasted a week. Subtract had seen the results of their punishments. The fear of even looking at them made him whimper with terror, but the pain in his limbs silenced him.

All he could do was to wait for was his dreaded punishment and the metal clankings of those who delivered them. He felt tears falling down his cheeks again.

_Heh…cry all you want but no one is ever going to save you. You will never be saved. You only destroy what you keep near. Everything that you try to protect, in the end, will be shattered into pieces and it will always be your fault._

When the Elgang heard Subtract waking up, they heard a panicked cry behind them. They all stopped and heard something crack violently. It was Persephone's chest that had been broken. Subtract, having woken up, kicked Persephone and Charon away harshly.

"Subtract?!"

Persephone and Charon were damaged from Subtract's unexpected kick and laid down on the ground, rendered immobile.

"What the hell, Subtract?!" yelled Elsword.

"Wha…what happened?" asked Aisha next.

Subtract didn't respond, he was still panicking from his nightmare. For a few moments, he couldn't comprehend the area around him and saw Apple's servants as the torturers from eight years ago. He only stopped hallucinating when he saw Apple looking upon them with a sad look on her face.

"Sorry…Apple," he muttered, loud enough for her to hear. Elsword was about to say something, but Rena stopped him, knowing full well what he'd say.

"Now, now, Elsword. You heard what he said," she told him and turned to Subtract. "Were you having a nightmare, or something?"

He gave her a look and said, "It was nothing."

"Are you sure, Subtract? You look really unsettled," pointed out Ara.

He didn't respond. Instead, he was looking at Apple who summoned her servants back. She turned around and walked up to him quickly.

"Sorry …" he started, but he was interrupted.

"You don't need to say it again, I know," she said in a gentle tone. "If you're sorry, then take responsibility."

He was a little bit surprised. There was no hint of anger in her voice. There was none at all.

She smiled, "Since more than half of my battle system is damaged, you'll have to protect me, okay?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but then closed it. Swallowing back the painful words he had once said in the past. To the four people who showed kindness to him in his life. To the people who died because of him. He willed the memory away as it threatened to bring another wave of headaches.

Subtract nodded.

* * *

There were still groups of demons wandering about, having lost one of their leaders. Once they saw the Elgang, they immediately went to attack them with no goal in mind.

"Do they not rest at all?!" said Elsword.

"It is strange. They shouldn't be able to aimlessly fight without their leader," responded Rena.

Screaming sounds could be heard behind the Demon groups. Rena looked ahead, seeing several Demons surrounding a small building.

"Wait, there are people in that building!" she pointed out.

"Then, let's save them! We can't waste time if people's lives are in danger!" yelled Elesis.

Without waiting for further prompts, she dashed forward and executed an attack, "Blazing Dance!"

She flashed from enemy to enemy, dealing fearsome fire damages. Yellow sparks were emitted from where she attacked and the Demons she could reach were defenceless against her brutal attacks.

"You heard her! Let's get saving, you guys!" shouted Elsword.

"Way ahead of you, musclehead!" said Add as he charged out in front. He jumped up in the air and kicked harshly into an electrical forcefield, "Quake Buster!"

The electricial force took out the Glitter Demons swarming around. Soon enough, Sentinels started jumping down from the buildings' roofs while shooting arrows.

Subtract gazed upon them boredly and pointed his hand at them, "Motion Blocker, Platform."

A flat barrier spread out below the Sentinels whose arrows deflected harmlessly against it.

"Setting: Repulse!" he commanded. The barrier glowed ominously, moving forward slightly.

The instant Sentinels began to land on it, they were immediately flung away like flies. This enabled Sentinels who haven't landed on it yet to be smashed into by their comrades, catapulting them with more force. Several blood spills were evident on its surface, giving the barrier a gory look.

"Thanks again, Subtract!" said Rena as she went to join the others.

He withdrew the barrier and looked at Apple who was still standing there.

"You going or what?" he asked.

"I am, just admiring your handiwork for a moment there," she responded. She started walking before looking back, "Aren't you going to follow?"

_She's acting like a princess, huh. Then again, she is one._ Subtract summoned his weapons and followed alongside her wordlessly.

* * *

"T-thank you so much for saving us!" cried a woman. She was hugging close her two children who looked at the Elgang gratefully.

"No need to thank us, madam, we're glad to have reached you in time," said Elsword, smiling reassuringly. "Just follow us closely, okay? We'll guide you to the Velder Garrison."

The woman stood up, holding her children's hands with both of her hands. She nodded to him, once again thanking them.

"So, what's your name?" asked Rena.

"I'm Velia," she answered.

"And what are your names?"

The children looked at Rena wearily.

"The one on my left is Charl and the one on my right is Izzie," said Velia. "Do excuse them for not replying. They…just need some time."

Her voice was faltering and a heavy hint of sadness could be detected from it.

"Where's their father?" asked Elsword bluntly. Aisha whacked him on the head harshly as if to say, _"Read the atmosphere, Elbaka!"_

Subtract and Add glared at Elsword, while the others just shook their heads.

"It's alright," said Velia softly. "He…he was killed by the Demons several days ago."

Subtract tched mentally.

"O-oh…sorry for asking, really stupid of me," muttered Elsword.

"We're very sorry for your loss," said Ara.

"Thank you very much," she repeated. Her tone sounded held back. _Is she on the verge of tears?_ Subtract tried to think about why she didn't do so now, but couldn't think of an answer.

* * *

The Elgang eventually found the Velder Garrison after sneaking pass idle Demon patrols. In order to lessen any risk for the citizens they saved, they had to manoeuvre through passages separate from where the patrols were.

The Velder Garrison had put up a temporary camp where rescued citizens and refugees were. Stationed soldiers stood guard at the wooden barriers with nearby archers in make-shift watch towers. When they spotted the Elgang, they let them in without hesitation. Vanessa did give a description of them after all.

"Centurion Vanessa will speak with you shortly. She is discussing strategy with Noel and Grail at the moment. You may take that tent over there for now," pointed one of the soldiers. Velia and her children went to join with the other citizens.

As the Elgang settled in, Subtract stood out to the side still thinking.

"What's wrong, Subtract?" asked Rena as she walked towards him.

"I was just wondering why that woman didn't cry. She sounded like she was just about to," responded Subtract.

"Well, if she broke down in front of her children, they would feel ultimately lost," answered Rena.

"They're already at a lost. They lost their father," he retorted.

"They haven't lost their mother yet, Subtract. If she cried for herself, her children wouldn't be able to cope. She was only doing what every mothers do," she said. "It's natural."

He didn't say anything else. Instead he looked down, his hair shadowing his eyes. _What…every mothers do?_

"Anyways, I'm going to help Elsword and the others. Are you coming?" she questioned.

"No," he shortly replied.

He sat down on his Operators, his legs suddenly feeling weak.

He didn't have a mother, so how was he supposed to know what was natural or not with them? Closing his eyes, he tried to recall a distant memory.

He was a barely of child age and was a toddler. A face of fair white smiled at him, flowing white hair tickling his cheeks. Then, he remembered cries of anguish. Subtract had no idea why he still remembered this, or why he had forgotten it. He gave it a perfect reason, _because remembering it wouldn't have changed anything._

Those cries of anguish, he recalled those five words clearly, "Give me back my child!"

Maybe those Scientists were wrong in a way. He was given only a hint of parental love and he was effortlessly conditioned to forget that. From the start, everything had been taken from him. Since the very start.

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of Chapter 22~~~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, don't forget to follow/favourite/review/share~ (sounding just like a YouTuber there XDD)**

**Replying to le reviews~**

**ThiefofStealth: Hehe, glad ya think Subtract's aweshume! And he basically has an iron body, always recovers XD Also, thank you and good luck with your exams, too~ Ganbare~**

**FriFriFurretball: Yep, I think I'm doing my exams pre-ttah well. Just three more to go ;w; Exams feel like Add's Mind Break. Maybe not as worse, but still!**

**STARdini: .-. No one will ever know...ssssssh. The password would put other passwords in the world to shame!-/knocked out. Huhu, but in all seriousness, glad this fanfiction (was about to misspell with fnaf-'ny fellow animatronic-lovers out there?!) is story-intense XD**

**Nagisaa-san: Aaaaas you can see, Subtract is all fine-or not.**

**catpupille: Thank you fo' the review. And who knows, only the next chapters will tell.**

**GirlyTurtle: The. Ship. Has. Sailed. All behold!**

**The Grimm Fate: Thanks :) I will**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake  
OS: These exams break my brain bones.  
DL: In a second, I'll break your body bones.  
OS: ;w; Can ya not say stuff like that? I'm startin' to feel paranoid.  
DL: ...  
OS: Seriously, all this paranoia-oh wait. Why are you looking at me like that? Like you've thought up of an amazing and genius plan that only aims to kill me?! N-no! RUN!  
DL: PARANOIA!**


	23. Guilt Will Stay

**Yo, here's the next chapter~! And dayum, I'm really dishing them out fast =w= Also, finished with exams so these updates might get a lil' more frequent eue~**

* * *

The Elgang sat inside the Velder Garrison's temporary Strategy Tent. Grail took place near the front to discuss what he had discovered.

"I've taken a sample from one of the Glitter Demons' corpses and analysed it. It seems that the reason they're able to attack tirelessly without resting is because they're taking stimulant drugs," he explained. "The formula seems complex, which is why I'll need the actual recipe from the Glitter Alchemist."

"Why would you need that?" asked Raven.

"So I can create a drug that conflicts with their stimulants. I used to study their material before so I'm pretty familiar with their work," he answered.

"Were you looking for something like this?" asked Subtract as he pulled out a worn-out piece of paper. It had drawn diagrams on it with labelled instructions. He gave it to Grail who scanned over it.

"Yes…this is the formula, but how did you find this?"

"A Glitter Alchemist by the name of Sullen Joaquin had it."

"S-Sullen Joaquin? You mean, the leader of all Glitter Alchemists? You defeated him?" Grail's eyes were wide open.

"I did. Does that have anything to do with what we're dealing with now?"

"No, it doesn't. In fact, thank you for defeating Sullen and bringing the stimulant's formula to us. I'll get working on it right away."

Grail hurried out of the tent to return to his make-shift laboratory. Subtract found it weird how Grail managed to put up a laboratory in the midst of all this chaos.

"This will make fighting the Demons easier, won't it?" asked Aisha. "But how is he supposed to make a neutralising drug with that laboratory? I mean, it's not exactly proper…"

_Looks like I'm not the only one who thinks it's weird._

"Ah, have you forgotten? He is the most famous Alchemist in Velder," said Noel. "This is a small feat for him."

"Well, let's get focused on the main issue here. We've managed to save as many citizens and refugees as we could, but we need to escape Commercial Area 1. Noel and I discussed on how we're going to do this, and…" started Vanessa. She pointed to an area on the map that was laid out on a table. "We think this area is least protected. When our soldiers were fighting through this area, they had reported that there were less Demons here than any other areas. It's the Southern Gate."

"Great, so we just have to make way to the Southern Gate, right…" started Elsword.

"What happens if that's a trap?" interrupted Subtract. Everyone looked at him. "Centurion, you said that the Demons were acting strategic, right? Shouldn't you think more carefully about what this implies?"

"That is true, but the other Gates are heavily flooded," she said.

"There's no other exits out of here?"

"None other than these Gates, no. Our only chance is the Southern Gate."

"You mean our only chance is to fall for the Demons' bait and be ambushed?"

"I'm not saying that…"

"That is exactly what you are saying. How many soldiers do you have here?"

"Just over a hundred…"

"That little? No wonder why we're in such a bad condition."

"Hey, Subtract, you're going a bit too far…" said Rena.

Subtract ignored her and faced Vanessa, "How many soldiers did you let die?"

Vanessa's eyes widened considerably at those harsh words. She didn't have any words to say.

"Subtract, go outside," commanded Elesis. Her tone sounded suppressed, but there was a smouldering anger emanating from it.

"Gladly," he said before exiting the tent.

He went back to the tent where the Elgang were allocated to and saw two children standing outside it. They were taping something onto the tent before they ran away. Frowning, he went over to read what it said, "Thank you for saving mamma and us!"

A charcoal drawing of Velia and the two children standing there, smiling.

He looked over to where the citizens and refugees were staying at, quickly spotting the two children. They ran towards their mother and sat beside her, smiling slightly.

There were many children like them two. Either staying closely to their parents, or idling around alone with dead-looking eyes. He could hear loud crying from nearby, belonging to a young woman calling out the name of a beloved one. There were too many people mourning the losses of their own.

However, the families who were still whole, or half-destroyed, were praying. Tears falling down their faces as their mouths moved quickly, saying prayers that might as well be futile. If they tried to escape now, those prayers would be burnt into ashes within seconds.

"Aisha is right. They've lost too much," he muttered under his breath. He turned to the charcoal drawing and flipped it up, revealing the blank side of the paper. He had one of his Operators imprint a message on it.

Subtract went towards the camp's exit pointing to the Southern Gate. Just then, Apple left the tent and saw Subtract walking out of the camp.

"Where is he going now?" she asked herself. "Cloaking!"

She became invisible and followed Subtract out of the camp.

* * *

Once he arrived near the Southern Gate, he could feel a numerous amount of Demon presences around him. Not only that, but the area was saturated with fire and charcoal soot.

"Huh, I was right. It is an ambush." He summoned his weapons and started to count the amount of Demons around him. "An obvious one at that. They can't even hide their own malice."

"Cannon Disposition – Radial Setting!" His guns instantly changed into cannons and started to extend, opening up to reveal layers of muzzles in a spiral pattern. An exact total of one hundred muzzles with fifty on each cannon. "Time to rat these Demons out."

The muzzles started to glow inside, emitting small pulses of energy.

"Punishing Fusillade!" In an instant, small missiles began to shoot out of the muzzles and homed in on the hidings Demons. Nothing could hide from the missiles as it was equipped with auto-tracking devices. Anything that moved, or showed signs of life, wasn't given mercy. Not only that, but it targeted the opponents' fatal areas as well.

Apple, having noticed, stood completely still and kept her invisibility at an all-time high.

The Demons were blasted from their places with fatals ruptured by the blow. It wasn't long until the grounds were covered in blood. The soot and the blood mixed together, creating a sinister colour of ashen gore.

Apple started to move again, but took care not to step in the blood puddles. She felt queasy at the mess of innards pooled onto the ground with a burning, metallic smell in the air.

"He's really planning to fight by himself," muttered Apple. Her drones followed quietly behind her as she tailed Subtract who continued on.

* * *

**A/N: And that be the end of the chapter owo~/ If ya like this fanfiction, don't forget to review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Also, I got a new Fanfiction up called, "She is, Forsaken". Check it out, if you like.**

**Replying to a review - **

**GirlyTurtle: Huehue...**


	24. A Fatal Error

**A/N: \;0;/ It looks like I won't be able to update as frequent as I said I would. I'm doing a couple weeks of work and holiday comes after...but I have an exam on the holidays too XDDD These exams just don't want to leave my boote-me alone~! ;w; The sorrow...the despair...THE INHUMANITY! (INMANITY!-coughcough ngnl)  
****Also, check out She is, Forsaken...the OC is too adorable fo' me ;^; **

* * *

The amount of demons started to pick up when Subtract reached the towers. The air, by then, was filled with the metallic scent of blood and soot as he moved deeper into the Gate. Glitter Demons were coming out of the woodwork like termites, shouting battlecries as they spotted their lone predator.

He picked off the Demons easily, sliding behind Panzers with ease. Demoniac Cannons that were mounted on tower platforms started aiming at Subtract.

"How bothersome," he sighed. "Impaler Drone!"

He sent out a drone that instantaneously took out the Cannons. Suddenly, the Glitter Demons stopped attacking and proceeded to surround Subtract. He frowned, "They stopped?" He then noticed an evil-looking presence oozing from the ground.

"Another Demon's presence? It's being summoned…"

A chalk symbol on the ground began to glow purple as a red-plated head appeared from it. Two green glowing eyes glared back at him. Without letting the Demon materialise further, Subtract kicked the chalk symbol which erased a portion of it.

The purple glow disappeared along with the Demon. _How very amateurish._ He felt another presence watching him. As soon as he turned his head to see who it was, it looked at him with a shocked expression before fleeting.

"So, there you are," he said. He gave the Demons around him a look before charging up his jets.

_This is bad,_ thought Apple. _To fly, I'll need to turn off Cloaking._

"Cloaking, deactivate!" The moment she deactivated her cloaking, the Demons noticed her and started charging at her. She ignored them and chased after Subtract, using her drones to jump from building to building.

* * *

Subtract chased down the cloaked figure onto the top of the Southern Gate's wall. He gave a short look behind him to see switches spanning around thirty metres from each other.

"I didn't imagine that a mere human could detect me," spat the figure. Subtract turned around to see the figure pull down its hood.

"Hmmm? Reunion after reunion, you're here, too?" responded Subtract. He knew who it was. Just like Sullen Joaquin, it was yet another Demon he killed over and over again. "Chloe, the Nephilim."

Chloe frowned, "I don't know you, mortal, so don't act like you know me. Well, soon, you'll be mincemeat along with your friend over there anyway."

Friend? He looked behind him to see Apple landing on the wall.

"What are you doing here, Apple?" he questioned, hiding his shock.

"I'm supposed to be asking YOU that! What are you doing here fighting the Demons alone again? One after another, why do you have to keep doing things alone?!" she yelled, suprising him.

"That's none of your business. Go back to the camp," he ordered.

"I'm not going back to the camp, Subtract," she said firmly. "I'm the Princess of the Nasod Race and I will not retreat to the camp!"

"Just because you're a Princess doesn't mean…" started Subtract, but he was interrupted by Chloe's laughing.

"You two are phenomenal! Bickering like a couple in the middle of a battlefield! Who the hell would do that?!" she laughed, talking in gaps.

"We're not bickering!" said Subtract.

"Yeah, yeah, well, you two were fair entertainment," commented Chloe. "Unfortunately, I'll have to send you two to Heaven now. Enjoy your final moments in hellish agony!"

She stomped on the floor beneath her, revealing a circular symbol with a pentagram within it.

"ROK MANDOOS SAMANDA…Come forth! Almighty Spirit of the Demons, Dark Nephilim, arise!" she chanted before escaping.

The floor started to tremor greatly as the symbol glowed ominously red. The head of a gigantic beast rose forth from it. Two wide, purple eyes glared at them as it climbed out of the symbol with its colossal, scaled body. Its clawed hands stomped on the floor before it proceeded to open its mouth filled with a numerous amount of teeth. The Nephilim roared at them as it began moving towards them.

"Quite the ugly customer, huh?" said Subtract. "So, Apple, still don't want to go back?"

"No, I'll stay here," she replied. "Just because I don't have Persephone and Charon, doesn't mean I'm defenceless."

"Your choice. Don't blame me if you want to go back in the middle of the fight!"

* * *

"Wait, where is Apple and Subtract?" asked Rena as the Elgang exited the tent.

"I don't know. They're probably back at the tent," shrugged Aisha. When they arrived at their tent, they saw the paper taped at its entrance.

"Oh, this was from Velia's children. How cute~!" gushed Ara.

"Hm, Ara, flip the paper," said Eun. Ara frowned in confusion but complied and flipped the paper. There were black words imprinted on it reading, "I'm off to solve this shitty situation we're in."

"Who wrote this…?" questioned Ara.

"Subtract," answered Add. "He's the only one who'd write that."

"Wha…he went off on his own?! Again?!" exclaimed Rena. "Wait, if Apple's not here. She went with him, too!"

Add started walking off.

"Where are you going?" questioned Elesis.

"Where do you think? Subtract is going to hoarde all of the Demons to himself. I'm not going to sit back and let him steal all the fun," he said, almost smirking.

"I'm coming with you, then," said Eve.

"Hm? You sure you want to come with me alone?" he said.

Eve frowned, then her eyes widened considerably.

"What are you talking about? We're all going to Southern Gate, yes?" she looked at the Elgang for confirmation.

"Well, after reading this…we can't as well leave Apple and him to fight alone, right?" answered Elsword. Elesis looked surprised and thought to herself, _he's grown more mature, huh?_

* * *

"Hurry! Hit the switch!" commanded Subtract as he continuously sprayed a wave of bullets at the Nephilim. The Demon pounded angrily on the floor, creating a rumbling force to sprout from the ground. Subtract flew higher, dodging it.

He could barely dodge the Dark Shards that shot at him before disappearing. Subtract and Apple had successfully made the Nephilim charge into the wall traps on the Wall. Its several scales were ripped off, revealing the bleeding flesh within.

Apple dashed forwards and whacked the switch backwards, triggering the wall to rise as Subtract barely passed the rising wall.

They both stood at a considerable distance from the wall, waiting for the wall trap to crumble. Suddenly, purple light began to rumble through the floor and destroyed the wall.

"Wha…" Apple gasped as the purple light smashed into her legs, making her fall backwards.

The Nephilim's eyes glowed red as it immediately shot forth a low laser beam from its mouth.

"Shit…Motion Blocker!" demanded Subtract. The force field just began to form as the beam shot through it. He instinctively dodged to the left, but realised his fatal mistake. His eyes widened in terror as he looked to his right to see Apple trying to stand up.

At the last moment, both of his eyes turned yellow as a mask affixed itself to his face.

* * *

**A/N: Hello~and that's the end of the chapter~! If ya like it, please review/favourite/follow/share~**

**Thank you to Azuha for adding this fanfiction to her/his follow 'n favourite~ owo. Also, thank you to for addin' the fanfic to her/his favourite...ya guys rock!**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake:**

**OS: *pokes* *pokes*  
DL: WTF you poking me for?  
OS: =w= Coz I felt like it.  
DL: ...  
OS: Also, that was a very lewd move back there~that invite to E-  
DL: I'm going to rip your head off right now.  
OS: *runs* WAI! ARE YOU NOT SATISFIED?!**


	25. Let's Go Back

**=w= Sorry for the wait, 'ere ya go~**

* * *

Apple felt herself get hit. She felt the unbearably burning wave of pain smack into her, pushing her backwards. Her sights were overloaded by intensely bright light and the sounds of several parts breaking echoed loudly in her ears. She felt herself land on the ground harshly. The bite of the ground sank its teeth into her back, friction burning her skin.

Then, she felt almost all the pain disappear in mere seconds. For a moment, she couldn't comprehend what was going on. She knew she was hit by the Nephilim's surprise attack, but where did her pain go? Something in her sensed that something was wrong. Something was off by a second, a minute—no, longer. It felt like time was being distorted. The ground beneath her felt like it was sinking before warping back into shape.

Apple started to gain a grip on her surroundings when she heard laughter. She felt immense dread creep into her heart as if the laugh was shaking her very core. When she looked ahead, her heart made an almost infinite pitfall. She didn't want to see this happen, yet it was unfolding before her eyes.

Subtract was hovering in the air above Nephilim. She realized that he had entered Time Mode with the appearance of his white hair and the turquoise cracks surrounding him. She stood up, although with difficulty. _I have to stop him…if I don't…_Back at the camp, she saw Subtract print a message on the paper. The Elgang would come for sure and the same thing that happened days ago would happen again. She had promised herself that she wouldn't let that happen.

Nephilim roared at him almost pathetically with all its scales ripped off. Its claws were broken and teeth were shattered. It swiped weakly at Subtract who lifted his hand towards it.

"Kekeke…Nephilim, don't bother coming back. You know what awaits you, right? I'll just kill you in the same agonizing way again and again. Even a demon like you can't bear this much pain, how pathetic," said Subtract. "I'll give you a fitting farewell."

"Lacuna Mutation."

Nephilim glowed blue as it started bellowing in pain. Its own voice became muffled as its own body started to collapse in on itself and several bubbles from within exploded outwardly. Soon, Nephilim's corpse became a grotesque mound of putrid flesh.

Apple watched the whole thing in shock. Her emotion circuits turned to disgust, revolted by Nephilim's corpse. Nevertheless, she started to walk towards him until she was behind him. Subtract seemed to notice her as he turned his head slightly. She was about to say something when he suddenly turned around, positioned to hit her. As a reflect action, she shut her eyes tight but nothing came.

She opened one of her eyes, seeing Subtract's hand next to her head with a formed blade. It stopped just inches away from her. Slowly, Subtract's hair returned back to normal and the white disappeared completely. The mask fell off his face, shattering on the ground. His hand quickly released the blade, letting it break upon ground contact.

He stayed silent as he looked at Apple's wounds. Apple couldn't tell what he was thinking—not like she ever could. With a flick of his hand, his Operators moved behind Apple to form a chair-like position.

"Sit down, you're injured," he said simply.

She was about to ask him a question, but decided to save it for later and sat down on the Operators. Subtract pulled up a screen and summoned spare parts. He repaired Apple's broken parts swiftly without overlooking any damage.

"I am surprised, though. I thought that Nephilim's beam would prove fatal," said Apple. "It held immense amount of destructive energy, or so my sensors received."

"It did, I just erased its Time a little," he explained. "Then I probably lost control after that."

"Probably?" she inquired.

"If you recall me nearly stabbing through your head, yes," he said, finishing the repair. Apple stood up as Subtract looked at her, making sure he didn't miss any repair. "Repair's finished. You should return back to the camp."

She frowned, "Where are you going, then?"

"Isn't that obvious? I'm going to track down Chloe and kill her before she causes trouble again."

"K-kill her? You do realise she's an elf like Rena?"

"So? That doesn't change the fact that she's a fucking enemy to be eradicated and plus…" Subtract grinned widely. "I've already killed her countless times that even this one will remember it."

Apple's eyes widened in shock and surprise. _He's seen her before? Not to mention killed her?_

"Subtract, what do you mean…"

"Nothing." They both stayed silent for a bit. The wide grin disappeared as he scanned over the area.

"Subtract, I don't think she would've left any traces. The Dark Elfs are known for their steathiness and expertise in escaping. We should go back to report to Vanessa."

"Keh, to that unreliable woman?" He did see the reason in not chasing after Chloe. It would've been futile to chase after a shadow after all.

* * *

Apple and Subtract traversed down the wall by using the staircases on the side. They took care of several demons in the way. Whilst they were running—or rather floating as Subtract flew on his Operators and Apple dashed forth with her drones—they spotted a group in the distance.

Apple instantly recognised them as the Elgang who also spotted them.

"Ah! It's them!" pointed out Ara.

"Why the hell did you go without us? You could've told us!" said Elsword.

"I did leave you guys a note," he stated. "At least, the Velder Garrison can fight their way through here easier."

"Easier?" said Rena with a questioning tone.

"This place was infested with Demons and Chloe was waiting to ambush the Velder Garrison with the Demons she summoned," explained Apple. "Although the Demon hoard has thinned a little, Chloe has retreated…"

Subtract pulled up a small screen while Apple was explaining, briefly looking upon it. A small red dot appeared on the screen that indicated movement. _Well, I'll save this for later._

"Well, who's going to go tell the Velder Garrison? Some of us should stay here to take down as much Demons as they can," said Elesis.

"I'll go then," volunteered Apple. She looked back at Subtract and elbowed him slightly. "And you're coming with me."

"Huh? Why should I go back with you?" he questioned.

"You've had your fill of fun," said Raven. "From the looks of the injuries you have, you've fought your fair share. You should go back to the camp to rest a little bit as well."

"Apple looks tired, too. There might be Demons on the way back so you'll be her escort," reasoned Rena.

"Hmph, you sure that's a good idea?" denoted Add.

Elesis realised what he was pointing out to and looked at Subtract, "You don't have to talk to Vanessa, just accompany Apple."

"It's good I'm taking orders from a brutish knight, isn't it?" Subtract said sarcastically. Elesis narrowed her eyes in irritation, emanating a fiery aura.

"Subtract," said Apple. "Getting into a fight with friends isn't going to…"

He started walking the way back while muttering, "How bothersome."

"I guess that's that," expressed Aisha, sighing. "Come on, Elesis, nothing comes out of glaring at Subtract. Apple won't let him talk to Vanessa, alright?"

"Though, I'm pretty sure Vanessa doesn't even want to talk to Subtract," pointed out Raven.

"You got that right."

* * *

**A/N: And that's le end of the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And man, did I manage to update this chapter earlier than I expected. I chose an easier option of gettin' a weapon in Elsword (not including SD and grendization, just gettin' a 300mil Sandtilus weapon [coughcough, that's NA for you]). **

**Also thanks to miiathekiller and Anub'Arak for adding this fanfic to his/her follows/favourites, ya rock~!**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**GirlyTurtle: And so, the suspense is over...or is it?/shot**

**miiathekiller: Here ya go and welcome to da family owo**

**Anub'Arak: Aren't we all gamers? Gaming is love, gaming is love, that's the creed XDDD**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake  
****OS: Man, I'm missing the holidays already.  
DL: ...  
OS: o-o Well, it ain't any different to be tired as piss.  
DL: Dafuq is tired as piss? Is your brain made out of piss?  
OS: Yeah, I can spot the tiredness in your dark sense of humour.  
DL: .-. *grabs a gun*  
OS: o-o, oh shyt... *starts running* WHERE THE HELL DIDJA GET THAT GUN FROM?!**


	26. Insolence Is Punished

**Yo! Sorry for the chapter release delay (or was it? Can't keep a count on the amount of weeks)~! Before ya go on reading, I'm going to set up a poll about whether or not, ya guys would like a list of Subtract's actives/special actives/passives to keep up with the amount he has. BUT, as you are aware, things like copying them is strictly not allowed. .-. If the majority says yes...do not abuse my good will...kekeke...**

**Also! One last thing! There's a movie reference somewhere here, have fun trying to find it if ya wish! owo**

* * *

The soldier guards welcomed Subtract and Apple in, bringing down the gate. The camp itself was tidied up with refugees and citizens in neater crowds. More soldiers were going in patrols, watching over the citizens with battle scarred eyes. The only thing that remained unchanged was that people stood with their heads hunched down with empty eyes and joyless faces.

Subtract spotted soldiers giving him hateful glares while muttering amongst themselves rather loudly.

"Was he the one that talked so disrespectfully to Centurion Vanessa? Who the hell does he think he is?"

"He doesn't have the right to talk to the Centurion like that, she really tries her utmost best!"

"It's not her fault, but ours…"

"Should we go beat up this bastard up? Someone like him is bound to put the Velder Garrison in danger!"

Apple frowned at them, "Their attitude is overly rude, isn't it? I mean, you did defeat Chloe for them. Although, they don't know yet."

"Hmph, attitude reflects leadership," replied Subtract. "I'll go back to the camp and you go deal with Vanessa."

"Right, I'll do so quickly," she said and left. Subtract sighed tiredly and made his way over to the tent. Several soldiers were nearby, throwing hateful looks at him. He paid them no attention and sat outside the tent, pulling up screens around him.

Without glancing up to see soldiers walking closer, he checked his status screen only to be met with a password screen.

"What the…it's locked?" he muttered. He pulled up another screen and connected it to his 'locked' status screen. Hastily tapping against the keyboard, he successfully hacked through the password. Before he deleted the password, he frowned at the password itself. "What kind of freaking password is this? It's purely idiotic."

He returned his status screen to normal and scanned over it. A list of medical recommendations was spread out on a separate screen, but he ignored it for now. Even after all these years, his body still suffered from the aftermath of the experiments and tortures he went through. Being an almost failed experiment held severe consequences in that he required machinery parts to keep him alive. If he mishandled any of the components, or left them without maintenance for a long time, he could very possibly die.

Even so, he held the reckless tradition of ignoring those conditions. Most of them had been both repaired and handled anyway. He fought just fine even if they were in a poor state. Although, he had paid the price several times.

"Oi, scumbag."

He glanced up to see five approaching soldiers whose hands were wrapped around their swords. With a flick of his finger, two of his Operators immediately opened up to reveal two gun barrels and was aimed directly towards them. They hesitated at the sight and stood their ground, one metre away.

"What do you want?" he asked in a cold tone.

"We want you to apologise to Centurion Vanessa," one said.

"That's rather civil, I thought you were going to beat me up?" he said, sneering slightly.

"Don't tempt us!" spat another.

"We're Velder soldiers! We aren't beaten so easily!"

"Is that so? Good to see there isn't much of you then. It really does fucking prove how good you guys are." Sarcasm was dripping from his voice as he glared at them. "More like, it's amazing how much pride you guys still have."

"We will not stand still so that you can continue your mockery!" Four of them drew their swords.

Subtract sighed heavily and stood up.

"You guys are running on pathetic fumes. Turn your empty, fucking heads around and look at the civilians you've sworn to protect. You'd waste your petty energy on fighting me than protecting them? How freaking disgraceful, you shitty mongrels! Maybe I should end your pitiful lives right here and now. You're better dead than alive at this freaking rate!" Subtract summoned his Negation Blade through his Operators, which instantly brought out the blade.

"Wait! Guys, we didn't plan this!"

"Shut up, Cecil! We'll settle this bastard once and for all!"

Cecil shook his head at them and backed away a considerable distance before disappearing into the tents.

The soldiers charged at Subtract, all attacking with stabs and slices. He weaved through them effortlessly and sliced through the armour platings of the first soldier, feeling fleshy resistence linger before perishing completely. The soldier fell limp, making the rest roar their battlecries and charge more frenetically forth. Subtract held his blade at his side before blinking behind them. With a wide slash, he managed to split their armoured shoulder joints. The blade's tip pierced into the shoulders, cleaving bits of flesh off. He whirled through the soldiers, disarming them almost literally.

"Ack! What the hell! How can he be that bloody fast?!" They all sat huddled up and fallen. Cascades of blood met the floor around them, creating a ceaseless puddle.

Subtract silently walked behind them and extended his blade.

"Could be because you're both slow and weak," he answered for them. They all stared at them, no longer with prideful arrogance but fear.

"O-oi…you're not going to actually…" one stammered.

He only gave a smirk in response. The blade stood at the side of the left-most soldier, poised to slash sidewards until it reached the last soldier.

"Hey! What in El Lady's name are you doing?!"

Subtract heaved a big sigh before giving an irritated glare to Vanessa who stood there with an angered expression. With a slight smirk, he answered, "Getting rid of trash."

"You will not kill any of my soldiers under my watch, Subtract," she said firmly. "Put away your weapon."

She glanced at the limp soldier on the ground, realizing that he was dead. His eyes still open while being immersed by the blood cuddling below.

_Ah well, I feel bored._ He withdrew his weapon and saw Apple standing behind Vanessa. She gave a short look of concern, beckoning him to come to her.

As he passed Vanessa, he said, "Your so-called soldiers value pride over civilians. I wonder if you value pride over your own soldiers, then?"

Centurion Vanessa's head lowered slightly and walked over to her wounded soldiers. Keeping a stern look on her face, she told them to go to the medical tents to get treated. With a glance of their shoulder wounds, she could tell that they may not be able to stay soldiers for any longer. Grail had once shown her how to treat soldier wounds and which wounds could not be saved. _I can't let this dishearten me. I have lives on my hands, I can't let them die. No matter what that person says,_ she thought strongly.

* * *

**A/N: End of the chapter~! Thank you for readin' and if ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**miiathekiller: \owo/**

**GirlyTurtle: =w= who knows, who knows...and romantic moments like kissing need to be surprising right? Even I don't know the answer =3=  
I do try to make the chapters 1,000+ words but eh.**

**(Very) Half-Assed Omake:**

**OS: School...the torture returns.  
DL: Good for you. Guess it's time to celebrate.  
OS: .-. The coldness blows strongly tonight.  
DL: Then, go to sleep.  
OS: .-. Just saying, this isn't antarctica...THAT TACTIC WON'T WORK ON MEHHHH AAAAAAARGH!**


	27. Sombre March Forth

**HOH, FINALLY DONE. Also, the poll's up on the profile. I forgot to add it there since er...I didn't really know how to use polls XD**

* * *

"I should've let you come with me to speak to Vanessa," sighed Apple. Both Subtract and Apple were walking through the camp, straying away from any soldier patrols. It seemed that all of them knew about Subtract and glared at him through their visors.

Subtract just remained quiet as he walked alongside Apple. She stared at him as if trying to read his expression, but all she got was a blank face with no meaning.

"What are you thinking?" she asked casually as if that would lighten the atmosphere.

"I'm thinking that I should do maintenance soon," he answered.

"Maintenance? On what?"

He tapped his right arm, "My arm along with other implants."

She remembered reading about his implants back when he was in coma. Although, she didn't focus directly on reading all of them, she recognised that almost all of them were for life support. Heavily damaged and poorly maintained, she got the feeling Subtract was being fairly reckless. As if he hadn't been already.

"Want me to help?"

Subtract frowned.

"There's no need for you to help me."

"Those implants are mainly of Nasod origin, right? I can help."

"I don't need you to help and I still need to fix your Nasod servants, right?"

Apple pouted slightly. They both heard the clink of armour coming closer as a lone soldier walking towards them with his visor open. Subtract recognised him as, 'Cecil'.

"Subtract and Apple, yes? Um, Centurion Vanessa sent me to tell you that we're ready to move through Southern Gate. The El Search Party are waiting at the gate as well," informed Cecil. "And…about earlier…I apologise."

Subtract's emotionless expression didn't change.

"Thanks for the message," he said. "And direct those apologies to someone else, I don't need it."

"If only I tried to stop them first…"

"You made the logical choice," pointed out Apple. "It seems to me that you left the dispute, Cecil. That was the most logical anyone could've made in that situation. You couldn't stop the four against one fight. Had you tried to stop your friends, they would've still disobeyed you and I don't think Subtract would've listened, too. You went to get Vanessa instead. That was the correct choice."

"The most logical choice…doesn't change the fact that I left three to be disabled and one to die," he said quietly. He shook his head and finished, "But still, I thank you, Apple. I apologise for wasting both of your time."

Cecil left the two.

"I gotta hand it to the guy. Not once did he showed a hint of blaming me," Subtract said, looking mildly surprised.

"Soldiers are more virtuous than you think," she pointed out.

"And also pathetic," he retorted. He started walking, "Come on, let's go."

Apple smiled and shook her head, "Right, let's not keep them waiting."

* * *

The Elgang stood in front of a whole crowd of refugees and citizens. Several soldiers were stationed at the sides with their swords in their sheaths. Visors down, they stood still like statues. There were several carts, carrying what little luggage were left from the town's destruction.

"Alright! We're going to start moving now!" announced Centurion Vanessa. "Everyone, move accordingly and keep in line!"

The horde began to move, creating a march of sombre.

Subtract and Apple hurriedly made it over to the front, meeting up with the Elgang.

"Hey, how'd you guys go with Southern Gate?" asked Apple.

"Pretty smooth. The Demons' coordination was messed up to hell so it was fairly easy," answered Elsword. "This escort shouldn't be too problematic, too!"

"Well, the escort's starting, guys," Rena pointed. "We should get moving, too."

* * *

The Southern Gate stood agape with its wooden gate open. Embers from nearby floated through the burning air, black lining the cracks in debris and orange painted on the surroundings. The wall itself was a crumbled heap of mess and only the Southern Gate seemed to be left standing. Judging on the amount of destruction the Demons had reigned on Velder, it was surprising that even the ground itself remained intact.

The Velder Soldiers kept an eagle's eye on the surroundings with hands on their sword's handle, fingers scraping the pommel like an itch. The clanking of their own armour was drowned out by the heavy marching. Maybe one couldn't call the sound a march, but a forlorn and sorrowful dissonance. Several children walked by their parents' hands, the others? Their eyes were dead like a corpse, skin pale like bones, footsteps rustling like dying trees and loss deeper than an abyss.

The whole sight was just depressing, but what's done has been done. Velder was a proud kingdom, but even now, the pride was thinned out like paper.

There a small amount of Demons but all of them sank into the shadows. Their yellow eyes leered and blood lust ebbed away. Even so, that didn't lower the awareness—more like agitation—of the soldiers whose eyes darted more frequently back and forth. Their grip tightening on the handles, visors clattering, but they kept up their stature.

All of this made the trip to the Velder Village seemed a lot longer than predicted. Negative emotions tended to prolong time, even though it didn't change the flow of time itself. It only weighed down on the minds affected by it, dragging it deeper down.

* * *

The Village was tidier than the last time the Elgang were there. The residents there prepared tents that were properly made and fitted with necessities. It wasn't long until the citizens and refugees settled in the tents.

Soldiers were ordered to guard the entrances and exits of the village, leaving several to stay near the tents. Vanessa ordered the blacksmiths still in the village to repair and prepare the Garrison's weapons. Her soldiers noticed her demeanour, more determined than before. She planned several defences around the village and was already discussing Velder's current situation with other higher-ups like her.

The Elgang rested near the village buildings and were given a place inside the building near one of the exits. They quickly settled on the manner of who got which room, deciding to rest a few days before anything else.

Subtract chose the far-end room of the corridor with one single bed, desk, wardrobe, window and a chest. It was an undeniably normal inn room, but that didn't interest Subtract in the least. The room was on the second floor, which enabled him a wide view of the village. He gave a glance outside the window, seeing several soldiers pass by. _So the woman is finally taking her shit more seriously, huh?_ He pulled up his own status screen with several orange-red colours blinking persistently at him.

He gave a glance out the window.

"I should get going with repairing Apple's servants, huh?"

* * *

**A/N: And so da small rest arc begins. If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And man, I felt so descriptive this chapter...must be Game of Thrones affectin' me. That book surprisingly isn't filled with graphic shyz. I heard the t.v show's first season is full of it X.X**

**Also, next few chapters "might" be a little longer and since holidays are comin' up...**

**Thank you to Leoric The Skeleton King for addin' this fanfic to his/her favourites and follows owo! Welcome to Half-Assed Reality~o3o**

**Sky-of-Silver-Lining: We all have our own time of glory...and yo, Skye~!**

**miiathekiller: owo**

**GirlyTurtle: Chapters might become longer. o3o Who knows...surprise kisses are the best XD**

**Hop, Omakes taking a break coz TESTS INCOMIN'!**


	28. Dine Inn Tranquality

**O-O Fast update, boom. I actually completed this chapter a couple days after releasing the recent one... *trollface* so I decided to release it a few days later... *ducks under cover of incoming attacks***

* * *

Subtract walked down the corridor, seeing several doors open with noises inside. He walked pass them without so much of a glance. Apple's room was near the stairway and the door itself was closed.

He turned the doorknob and entered the room. The first reaction he had was just standing on the doorway, with one step far backwards and one at the doorway. There was almost no expecting the sight he saw. Not an inn room covered in almost complete pink. Well, almost meant that the pink was complemented with royal red. To dilute the rich colours, light baby blue patterns swirled the wallpapers.

"Uh…" He saw Apple by the window with both her hands on the window sill.

She turned around, looking slightly surprised to see Subtract standing in her doorway.

"Hi," she simply greeted. Her clothes looked cleaner somewhat, but then there were her drones floating by her side. They were equipped with scanners that cleaned on scan.

"Why is the room so damn pink?" he questioned.

She smiled and replied, "It's just a holograph."

"Right, maybe you should turn it off so I can concentrate while repairing your servants," he deadpanned.

"Oh, right, that."

She went over to a drone in the corner before turning around, "My servants are pink you know."

He only stared as if saying, "I don't care, turn it off" only with a swearing edge. She sighed and pressed a button on the drone, returning the room back to normal.

* * *

Subtract refitted Persephone's chest with minor changes to the inner gears. Charon was restored with several plate refittings. After almost an hour of reconfiguring the settings, the two servants were activated with ease.

"And finished," said Subtract. Apple had helped point out some of the settings and parts Subtract didn't recognise, but she mostly watched his handiwork. There was a point, however, when she noticed he was more tired than usual but said nothing about it.

"Both Add and you are really good with technology, I'm amazed," complimented Apple.

"Considering I have several Nasod implants and wield hi-tech weapons, it's not really much of a surprise," he said. He turned to leave. "I probably should get on doing maintenance now."

Before he could leave, Elesis was in front of him.

"We're having dinner now, so you guys come down stairs immediately," she announced, with a tone of excitement. "We all haven't eaten in ages so the table is full with meat, drinks and ladles of soup."

"I'll eat later," he said, narrowing his eyes.

"Nope, we're all eating together whether you like it, or not," she said.

"And why is that? I thought you hated me," he replied, sneering a bit.

"I do, but…" she started. "You saved us from getting done in by Spriggan and you protected the citizens."

He raised his brow at that.

"When you left the camp to solo Southern Gate, you did it for the Velder citizens, didn't you?"

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't, or maybe I just did it for the fucking fun of it."

"Right, right, let's go downstairs."

He sighed, now aware that Elesis really wasn't one to give up. Apple followed along behind him.

* * *

Downstairs was filled with the scent of food wafting through the air. A warm light glowed through the room, fiery against the wallpaper's monotone colours. There was a large table set up with a creamy coloured tablecloth and wooden chairs sat around it.

Hunks of meat were on circular plates, dripping with sauces lavishly. Sweet salad with plums and cracked nuts on its top in wooden bowls. There was a scent of spiced garlic coming from the central plate, yet another meat dressed but in gravy upon a grand platter. Bowls of creamy, pumpkin soup sat steaming with wooden ladles. A platter of bread accompanied it. There were jugs of juices, which smelled sweet with a scent of alcohol.

_This seems fit for a king._

The Innkeeper smiled at the Elgang's surprised faces, "You guys saved Velder so I went all crazy with the food. Please, sit and eat."

The Elgang sat around the table, having given their thanks to the Innkeeper. Their plates were wide and filled up with meat. Cups were filled to the near brim, drunken down in almost an instant.

"Does she really expect us to eat all of this?" asked Ara, looking dizzy at the large amount of food.

"We might as well! I'm starvin'," responded Elsword as he wolfed down chunks of meat.

Subtract just poked at the meat in front of him, honestly not feeling too hungry. He ate anyway to fill in the near-nonexistent appetite he had. He was never one to eat a lot anyway. As the Elgang talked and ate, he had only eaten a small hunk of meat and a glass of juice to wash it down.

Soon when most of the meal had been eaten, the empty plates were replaced with desserts. There were plates of tart, filled extravagantly with strawberries, cherries and plums, decorated with snowy icing sugar. Next to it was pile of baked apples sprinkled with aromatic cinnamon. The portions, however, were slightly smaller as the Elgang had eaten up a feast.

With an idle gaze at the dessert, Subtract ingested a tart and a baked apple. He had to admit, the food was better than the ones in Henir. Well, imagine Glaive in an apron making food. That should give a rather…clear image on how the food was considering Glaive doesn't "eat".

"So, Subtract, you fought Sullen Joaquin by yourself right?" questioned Elesis.

"Yeah, what about it?" he responded.

"I heard that he was pretty hard to fight since he has a variety of potions," said Raven who didn't seem to be eating his dessert.

"Not really, there wasn't a shred of melee skills so he was laughably easy," Subtract said.

"Wow, but doesn't he normally make sure nobody goes near him? How in the world…" trailed off Aisha.

"He must've been too Sullen."

The whole table seemed to stop.

"Was that a…pun?" questioned Add.

Subtract just nibbled on a piece of tart, not acknowledging the rather dumbfounded stares at him.

"Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't, I don't fucking know," he replied. _Heck, it might be that juice._ It did have traces of alcohol in it. He had to wonder if the Elgang were a bunch of minors, including himself. A wave of tiredness suddenly swept over him. The small sound of his fork falling went unheard.

He stood up and turned to leave.

"Oh, where you going?" asked Apple.

"I'm done eating," he muttered, making his way to the stairs.

Apple glanced at the Elgang and left the table, too.

* * *

Subtract made it up the stairs before he collapsed to the ground, feeling his tiredness weigh on his consciousness. "Subtract, what's wrong?!" Apple called out. The rest of the Elgang seemed to hear as loud footsteps ran up the floorboards.

"Nothing," he answered, albeit rather quietly. He heard footsteps coming up the stairway behind him so he tried standing up. The opening of his own status window sounded.

"Are you freaking serious? Why the hell did you go without maintenance this long?" questioned Add.

"I was about to, shithead," he growled, leaning against the rail.

"What are all those beeping lights indicating?" pointed out Aisha.

"His implants are failing, so basically he's suffering multiple organ failures."

"What?!"

Subtract started walking down the corridor, "Like I said, I was about to do maintenance. So, don't enter my room. I'll be out in a couple hours anyway."

Without another word, he entered his own room and the locking sound resounded through the corridor.

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~! If you like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Also, thank you to Bunni Pinkia and FlyxzX01TheKiller for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows/favourites o3o~!**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**Sky-Of-Silver-Linings: o-o Pun, bam, THERE IT IS! *cackles* Lel, thought ya didn't like my bad puns o3o**

**miiathekiller: *claps hands and shoots party confetti***

**Nagisaa-san: uhuhuhuhuhu *cackle continues to infinity***

**Guest: BOOYAHTY! *presses play on dance music* ALL DEM DANCES!**


	29. A Puzzling Question

It had been around two hours since the door remained locked. During then, everyone resumed their previous activities. They were all resting from the Velder battle after all. It should've granted an atmosphere of tranquillity but after Subtract collapsed, there was only a tense atmosphere.

Everyone was hanging around downstairs and most of them had gloomy expressions on their faces. More like, almost none of them knew Subtract had Nasod implants other than his heart and that shocked them. To top it off, those implants were his life force. They managed most of his organ systems and sustained his own life. Almost no one had to care about maintaining their own organs because it never failed them if they sustained a good enough life style.

"Shouldn't we go check on him after all?" asked Aisha. "I mean…he's been gone for a pretty long time."

She looked at everywhere who still had gloomy expressions before they suddenly stood up. The sudden reaction made Aisha jump back a bit as they made their way upstairs.

"O-oh?" she only uttered before following them.

* * *

Add was the first one to knock on the door and they all waited for a response.

"What do you guys want?" questioned Subtract.

"We just want to check on you if you're alright," said Rena. "Can we come in?"

The click of the door sounded as it swung open. One of Subtract's Operators had opened the door before it whirred back to its owner. Subtract was sitting on the edge of the bed with several screens surrounding him. There were black cables attached to his torso and some could be seen unattached, lying on the bed surface.

Apple spotted the needles at the end of the cables, which made her think of how painful those might've been. Even some of the Elgang looked a bit shocked at the cables.

Subtract didn't give them a look of acknowledgement as he continued typing on a virtual keyboard. He gave the screen in front of him a couple taps before most of the cables detached. Finally, he gave a look at the Elgang who stood awkwardly at the doorstep, crowding up the door.

"So, how are your implants?" asked Rena.

"I'm alive and breathing, so you can assume they're fine," Subtract replied. He stood up and went for the desk in the corner of the room. "Is that all you guys needed? You can leave now."

"Whup, he doesn't want us in the room, let's go," said Elsword before Rena pulled on his arm.

"What about we stay here until it's late at night? We should all get to know each other better, right?" suggested Rena. Aisha, Ara and Elesis nodded at the idea, while the others (except Elsword) shrugged their shoulders. "Plus, we don't have much to do."

"I'd rather you don't. You guys don't need to get to know each other in my room," said Subtract. He didn't have a reason to get to know the Elgang anyway. Not his problem, was it?

"Don't be like that! You're included you know? Part of the Elgang," said Rena, smiling. He didn't say anything, yet they had already settled in his room and closed the door. He sighed inwardly and summoned a device on the desk, thinking it was best just to ignore them and continue on with what he was doing.

He took off his jacket and nonchalantly detached his right arm, causing nearly the whole Elgang to freak out.

"Wha…what did you take your arm off?!" pointed Elsword. "I mean…that's your arm, right?!"

"I'm just performing maintenance on it," he answered in an irritated voice. "Now shut up and let me concentrate for a moment."

He extended his stump of an arm as two of his Operators opened up, emitting a turquoise light from within. A triangular light, resembling that of a scan, formed his arm. White steams of light shot from his shoulder to the tip of his fingers, forming a holographic version of his arm.

"You made another arm?" asked Apple, observing the arm. She reached out for it, only for her hand to go through the arm itself. "And it's holographic, too. What are you going to use it for?"

"Why is it that I have to keep answering questions?" he responded, even more irritated. She moved closer until she was standing right next to him.

"Is that a bad thing? We're all trying to get to know each other as well. According to my database, when you want to get to know each other, you ask questions about each other," she answered.

Subtract narrowed his eyes. "It's none of my concern…"

Apple stared directly into his eyes with a stubborn gaze. Eventually, she got almost too close to his comfort zone and he pushed his chair backwards. He sighed deeply and raised both his hands in a surrendering pose.

"Fine, fine, but I'm only giving half-assed answers," he said, giving a short glance at the watching Elgang. "It's just a non-physical arm that allows virtual calibration and digital programming. The Operators that project it are connected to the device my arm is on with a wireless connection."

"W-wha…?" Elsword's eyes look like they were swirling in circles. "Don't understand half the things ya said."

There seemed to be the majority of them who didn't understood what was just said, except for a few of course. Apple just nodded at the explanation, "Oh, just that?"

"There's not much else a non-physical arm like this can do and that's all I need from it."

He made a whipping motion across the air, creating a screen. Having turned back to his arm, he started typing rather (God speed) fast. Everyone just started speaking towards each other, questions being thrown across. They tried to reel Subtract into their conversations, but he remained concentrated on his task.

The conversations bounced from Velder to food, food to drinks, drinks to embarrassing moments, and moments to family. Elsword's family were mainly the villagers of Ruben, although they weren't blood related. Elesis was the same, but she mainly thought her family as her younger brother. Rena's family was in the Elf World, but married to none. When she was asked her age…well, kicks were thrown. Raven just stated he didn't have any blood-related family because of his own past, so the topic skipped to Aisha instantly. Her dad was back at her hometown and she didn't have a mother. As for Eve, she simply said hers were destroyed in a war and that she would revive them. Apple was the same.

"So, Subtract, what about your family?" asked Rena. "Any family members other than Add?"

Subtract ceased typing almost immediately, pausing. The question had caught him by surprise and he answered it with silence.

"Subtract?"

He gave a sideward glance at the Elgang who waited for an answer.

"It's none of your business." His tone had sounded sharp, but there was a hint of melancholy. He gave a look at the time and said, "It's already late."

"Oh, right, we all best be getting to bed then! Innkeeper said the baths are up and running tomorrow morning as well!" said Rena. Everyone looked at Subtract as they exited the room, thinking they shouldn't have switched the topic to family. Not everyone can openly talk about their family.

The door closed but he could tell someone stayed behind. It wasn't who he guessed it'd be (which was Apple), but it was the least person he expected, Add.

With a thump sound coming from Subtract's bed, he gave a sideward glance and didn't say a word. _How fucking unexpected is this?_ Subtract continued to derive weapon diagrams into multiple screens, reconfiguring them.

The silence persisted on for several moments before it was broken with a question. Yet again.

"How'd you get to this time period?" Add asked.

"Why do I have to answer you?" responded Subtract.

"Why not? This isn't the time period we came from, y'know."

"…I'm slightly aware of that. This isn't eight years in the future as far as I can tell. There's no war and the Nasod Race has been destroyed. This shitty land can't become this peaceful in just eight freaking years."

"Hmph, well you're right on that account. You really haven't even asked around for the date? It's been one hundred years since the war."

Subtract stopped typing. _So I've been thrown this far into the future, huh?_

"Keh…so that's what it was."

"You still haven't answered my other question."

"I'm not obligated to tell you jack shit, but I guess I owe you a hint: It's somewhere in time and space, but it doesn't exist on this dimension plane."

Add only grinned at that.

"Heh, no wonder we're brothers. Trapped in the same kind of place and shipped to the fucking future. How nice."

Subtract raised his brow at that, but didn't say anything. More like, he was confused as to why Add was in his room in the first place. He clearly remembered that he made a threat to kill him when he had the chance. _Well, he's freaking lucky then. I can't fight until I complete maintenance. _

Add stood to leave the room, but stopped at the doorsteps for a moment.

"Have you ever thought…of going back in time?"

Subtract's eyes widened a bit and he turned around, only to find that the door had closed. _Going back in time?_ He turned back to the multitude of maintenance screens. _Can't say it hasn't crossed my mind yet._

* * *

**A/N: And yeeet another end to a chapter~! If you like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Replying to the reviews o3o: **

**GirlyTurtle: All the pinks...I don't think Subtract could handle it XD**

**Sky-Of-Silver-Lining: Hue...**


	30. Always Bad News

**I'm pretty sure there are guns being pressed against my head...huhu. ;w; I apologise~! I'm near the end of my holiday so I've been procrastinating a lot and surfing on writer's block. Huuuu...well, here's the chapter o3o**

* * *

Centurion Vanessa visited the Elgang the next day with a solemn look on her face. There were a couple escorts behind her who she ordered to stand outside the inn as she entered. Everyone gathered at the table as she stood by the door, refusing a seat.

"I won't be here long, but I do have bad news to tell you," she stated. "The Fluone Continent to our North is being attacked by the Demons. Our Red Knights that are stationed there are also trying to fight them back. Red Knight Captain Penensio is in charge of the army over there and he had sent an emergency message for the Velder Garrison to send reinforcements. Unfortunately, since we're still being swamped by the Demons…giving them the reinforcements they need is impossible."

She pulled out an envelope from her pocket. A red seal could be seen on it.

"I know this might be too much to ask for, but seeing how your ability has saved Velder citizens, I request that you help the Red Knights. I implore you, on behalf of the Velder Garrison, to save Fluone."

Elesis took a stand with a grim expression.

"So, even Captain Penensio is…" she muttered. "Can you tell us the exact situation that is happening over there, Centurion Vanessa?"

"Demons began invading the city of Resiam a week ago. Hamel requested the Red Knights to help fight back the Demons, but it turns out the situation was worse than we originally thought. The Demons, like in Velder, have appeared out of nowhere and took Resiam by surprise. It is currently being swarmed by darkness and already half of it is submerged in water. Captain Penensio who's in charge of the Red Knights over there has tried his best to defend both Resiam and Hamel, but as of right now, they're fighting a losing battle. The Senace Kingdom of the Fluone Kingdom is undeniably under danger."

"I see. Well, as a Velder Knight, I'd head over there as fast as I can," said Elesis. "In fact, I'd go there even if I have to go alone to do so."

"Don't exclude us, Elesis," said Elsword. "We'll go as well. Ain't no Demons are going to have their way on Elrios!"

Elesis gave him a faint smile before she looked to Centurion Vanessa.

"Since the Leader has said so, we'll deliver your message for you and save Hamel. The El Search Party are on their way!"

Centurion Vanessa smiled and gave Elesis the envelope.

"That is good to hear. I'll have the ship to Hamel prepared right away," said Vanessa before she left.

"Isn't there an El Shard in Hamel?" questioned Rena. "They really want to take the El, huh?"

"They wanted to take the Shard from Velder's castle. Something like this isn't hard to assume," answered Raven. "Well, we all better get prepared, right? The ride to the Fluone Continent is no joke after all."

"I've heard that it takes more than ten hours to get there!" said Aisha with a distressed expression. "Not to mention the large amounts of water monsters lurking, too. With the increase of Demonic influence, it's certainly not going to be a peaceful ride…"

"That means there's gonna be plenty of ways to pass the time, right?" pointed out Elsword.

Aisha gave a sideward glance at Elsword, "Well, sure…I mean, I've been developing underwater spells for a while, so this will be a good opportunity to test them out."

Elsword looked surprised. "Underwater spells? Hoh, that's cool! Maybe you can show me them when we get on the sea?"

Elsword was leaning close to Aisha, causing her to reflectively whack Elsword with her staff. She was blushing slightly as she said, "Elbaka! You're leaning too close!"

Rena smiled as she made her way upstairs, "Let's just leave these lovebirds to bicker while we prepare, right?"

"We're not lovebirds!" said both Elsword and Aisha before they hmphed at each other.

"Right, right," chuckled Elesis.

* * *

Everyone seemed to finish preparation fairly fast. All the luggage were neatly piled downstairs with additional supplies given by Vanessa. She had also informed them that more supplies will be stored on the ship along with some of her men.

Although, the Elgang never had much luggage to begin with anyway. Just folded up tents, minimal supplies, potions and their own weapons. Mainly because they stayed in nearby towns to replenish potions and to repair equipments. As for food, it was easier to hunt for their own when they didn't have enough money. Aside from taking down Demons and enemies, life on the journey was fairly sustainable.

"Well, I'm off to walk around this village for a bit," said Rena. "Anyone care to join me?"

"I'll go with you, then," replied Raven.

"I'll go, too!" responded Ara.

"Alright, you guys have fun! We've got plenty of time to muck around and rest, after all," stated Elesis, polishing her blade.

The three left the inn rather casually. There wasn't much to walk around in the village with all the tents covering the area. It was crowded with citizens and refugees who spent most of their time chattering, or resting in their tents.

"This place looks better than I thought," commented Ara. People no longer had forlorn expressions on their faces, but that didn't seem to make the place cheery. Every single one of them just looked tired.

"Maybe that's overestimating it," said Eun. "They all feel the same as before. They lack the emotion of hope and happiness, but it's nothing time cannot fix."

"Time always manages to heal up things a bit. Even though there's the Demon Invasion, this isn't like the war many decades ago," disclosed Rena. She gave an upward glance at the sky. "Humans are more peaceful and compassionate about each other in this time period. That puts a rest on my Elven soul."

Rena quickly moved her head to her right, "Or maybe not all of them are as peaceful. There's a disturbing aura in the air…we should go check it out."

"There's no other choice. This feeling is downright murderous, but it doesn't belong to a Demon!" said Raven, narrowing his eyes. "Seems like it's just a bit further from the entrance. Let's go, shall we?"

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Also, thank you to Code-Nemesis (EVE-SAMAAA-/shot) and The Weeping Prophet for adding this fanfiction to their follows.**

**Replying to the review:**

**Crack-jouchan: Hue, pink foreva-actually, no, Dark Purple for life o3o~! Well, no point in being moody with a comrade, that puts people in danger after all. Huhu, well aside from Doctor Who, time travel never ends well. Especially-/shot Whoa, nearly placed a spoiler hint...I gots to be careful...kuhuhu...**


	31. Never Peaceful Greetings

**OHMGG, WORDS CANNOT DESCRIBE HOW APOLOGETIC I AM! ;w; Yeah, I didn't update for like what...3 weeks? Reasons, reasons: Things went a bit downside lately so it was hard to get the chapter up (I cri evrytiem) Oh wells, this chapter is a little longer...and I think I'm slowly turning my update dates to just whenever I can get a chapter up XDDD-/shot dead**

* * *

There weren't any guards by the entrance and that put the three (four) on alert. There were weapons laid clattered on the ground and their owners were nowhere to be seen. The entranceway, left unguarded, led to a pathway with thickets of trees on both sides.

"Seems like the guards got taken," assumed Ara. "I hope they're alright."

"Huhuhu…how kind hearted of you," chuckled a voice. The three immediately looked around their surroundings, but were unable to find the owner of the voice. "Up here, up here~!"

Above the entranceway, a cloaked figure was standing while blocking the sunlight. Squinting their eyes, they couldn't see the face of the person. It was taking advantage of the sun as to shadow its own face heavily.

"It is nice to see you, members of the El Search Party," it greeted. Its voice was neither too high, or too low, making it hard to identify what gender the person was. It made a mocking bow to the three, its voice adding to the mocking and sarcastic tone of its presence. "I guess I got to hand it to you to be able to sense my aura. I did try my best in hiding it."

"Who the hell are you?" questioned Raven. "What have you done to the guards?"

"You have my compliments, former mercenary, but then again…something like this is child play to guess. They were playing around while on duty so I thought I'd give them a lesson, or two," it responded, chuckling again. It threw down something in front of the three.

Two bodies laid down in front of them, dead and mutilated. Their armour was ripped apart and they were completely dyed in crimson red. Bones appeared to poke out at uneven angles and organs laid loose on their sides. They were quickly assumed to be the guards whose weapons laid abandoned.

Rena gasped at the corpses, immediately feeling sick to the stomach.

"How the hell could you do this?" questioned Rena angrily.

"Easy, easy, humans are always fragile," it answered. "Well, it was nice meeting at least four of you. I'm running on a schedule here, but I do think we'll meet again soon."

Raven had already drawn his sword as he glared at the figure, "Did you think we'll let you escape like that?"

It chuckled, "No, but I don't think you have a choice."

With another bow, it withdrew from the edge and fell backwards. The three quickly ran forwards, but the figure was nowhere to be seen. It disappeared without a trace.

"That was a rather ominous greeting," commented Eun.

"That bastard escaped too fast. His presence didn't indicate he was a demon…could he have been using black magic, or something similar?" contemplated Raven. "His presence has disappeared completely."

"We…should probably ask Aisha about this," Ara finally spoke up. Her eyes were still glued to the guard's corpses with a sorrowful look in her eyes. "I think we should bury them. They didn't deserve to die like this."

* * *

**Back at the inn**

* * *

"He might've had spatial powers?" questioned Aisha. "Sounds like Subtract, but you said he just disappeared, right? Raven, you think it was black magic he used?"

Ara, Raven and Rena had returned back to the inn where everyone had assembled downstairs.

Raven nodded, "Back when I was a mercenary, enemies often disappeared like that with high traces of Dark El and mana used. There was one in particular who was an expert at using magic in that way, but I'm pretty sure he died a long time ago."

"Except, there weren't any traces, Raven," said Rena. "If there was high traces of those two energies, I could've easily sensed it. As you had said earlier, his presence has disappeared completely and without a trace."

Subtract sighed, "Who the hell said you can't teleport without a trace? You don't even need spatial powers to do something like that. One could teleport a short distance and hide their presence just as quick."

He felt rather irritable as he was woken up early after having only three hours of sleep. Last night, he was still working on updating his battle tactics and weapon management until it was five in the morning. Using his Time Mode to reverse an hour was almost tempting—not like his abilities stretched that far yet.

"Well, he sounds like an underling from the Demons. He probably fell to the Dark El and used his powers that way," suggested Elesis. "Although, he seems to know how to kill stealthily…"

"We were able to sense him, though," pointed out Ara.

"He greeted you guys, right? He must've done that on purpose. I think he was also underestimating the Velder Guards a lot, he didn't think anyone else would sense him…and he was right," said Elesis with gritted teeth. "He underestimated Velder, that bastard."

"Well, we'll be seeing him later, right?" confirmed Elsword. Ara nodded. He stood up while rising his polished blade. "Then, as soon as we see him, we'll cut him down, no qualms given."

The sun was stretching in through the window, gleaming on his blade as he said that. Seemingly set on Elsword's choice, the Elgang nodded or sounded their agreement.

Everyone went about talking about Hamel next, discussing what they've heard about it. A floating capital near the wide sea between Lurensia and Fluone. Its buildings were said to be pure white and akin to the sun rising behind it. The sun had always been a guidance towards Hamel, or towards the coasts of the Fluone Continent. A grandiose city that existed as a spectacle by itself, which was protected by the Seiker family.

"Speaking of the Seiker family, what happened to them protecting the Senace Kingdom? Especially since the Demons are trying to invade Hamel, they should be both leading and supporting the Red Knights as well…" said Elesis. "I forgot to ask Vanessa. Oh well, I'll ask her tomorrow, I guess."

Subtract just stood from his chair, losing interest in the mention of Hamel altogether. To top it off, he didn't manage to complete what he was doing last night as he passed out on his desk. Only to be woken up and forced to drink coffee by Apple. According to her "database", coffee is good for waking people up and giving them sufficient energy. She even suggested to put sliced fruit in it and Eve had joined in with the suggestions, thinking the sweetness would complement the bitterness. Subtract almost lost his mind and just gulped down the coffee before the two could do anything else.

As a result, Subtract wanted nothing more than to just lock himself in his room and sleep without disturbance. With a slight sigh, he started heading upstairs and heard footsteps following behind him.

"Can I come with you?" asked Apple, whose voice he recognised immediately. He turned around to look at her who stared at him, awaiting an answer. "You're going to work on your weaponry, right? I was curious about how it works, so can I watch?"

"Your choice, I don't really care," he responded.

* * *

It would be a busy day tomorrow. Subtract had thought this before he passed out at five. He recently discovered that there was yet another Artillery mode hidden in his battle data. Already having several methods of fighting, he figured that it wasn't necessary to work on it but he might as well check it out. It was a good way to waste the time anyway. The new Artillery mode was more versatile and more mobile in convenience. Sure, it was to Subtract's taste, but he barely remembered working on it.

Subtract had invented many battle Modes, only to trash them because his Nasod Heart couldn't take the massive load. The only thing he could do was run simulations in his head on how he would use these weapons. Thankfully enough, he was able to use OP – Annex. Using his previous weapons like Negation Blade just took slightly longer. Since his arm had been replaced with a new one, his former battle tactics weren't so much in use anymore. This meant his way of fighting could drastically change with just an arm replacement.

Waving away those thoughts, he set to work on his arm as he did last night. Apple watch with a concentrated gaze as if taking in Subtract's way of doing things. It was very complicated, but something in the way he did it, was graceful and at ease. With a faint smile, she sat on his bed in silence.

* * *

**THAT TYPO THAT WAS THERE THOUGH...but it's gone now :D Mocha is the best coffee...amirite?**

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter. If you like the fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~! I'd greatly appreciate it~!**

**Also, thank you to Omnitrain for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows~!**


	32. Sharing is Caring

**I can't recall if this is an early chapter or what. My brain's rotten XD But oh well, early chapters are the best, right?**

* * *

The Elgang rested and was ready to go on the voyage to Hamel—except, Subtract and Add who were up all night researching. Centurion Vanessa waited for them at the port, which was a little ways off from the village itself. The port was scarcely guarded, but there were still functional ships awaiting in their docks. Vanessa was waiting by the far-right ship, which gates were open to welcome in boxed supplies.

"I'm sure you guys have gotten a good rest," greeted Vanessa. Most of the Elgang nodded, or sounded a yes. "I'm aware the voyage to Hamel through the Elrios Sea isn't exactly safe, so I've selected one of our most sturdy ships. It also has emergency boats in case something happens."

"That's pretty generous," commented Aisha. "You sure you guys can let go of such a ship?"

Vanessa smiled and nodded, "You guys saved Velder from a dire situation. Something like this boat isn't enough to qualify as a reward. Now, the Captain awaits and I'm sure you guys would want to get to Hamel as quickly as possible."

"That would be favourable, yes," responded Elesis. Despite her strong looks, she harboured a worry within her heart. She was still shock to hear that the Demon Invasion at the Senace Kingdom was unbearably horrendous. Her dearest of friends, Captain Penensio, was at the centre of all that and braver still. She gave a sideward thought about him, _maybe not just as a friend_. That thought was quickly whipped away as soon as it entered.

"But, first I'd like to ask about something…"

"Ask away."

"What happened to the Seiker Family that protects Hamel? The situation couldn't have gotten this worse if the Seikers are there."

Vanessa sent a sullen look.

"About that, something happened to the family leader. He's been influenced by the Dark El and has joined their side. Due to this, the Seikers are in disarray and are without a capable leader. I heard that the heir to the Seiker is trying his best to protect Hamel, but it's not going so well."

"The White Colussus of Hamel joined the Demons?! No wonder…"

"Well, you should probably not keep the Captain waiting. He's not always patient."

The Elgang made their way up the ship on a wooden ramp, bringing their luggage with them. The ship was vast and wide, looking sturdy as Vanessa had described. Above them was a tall mast equipped with bright red and the golden, Velder sigil imprinted on it. The quarterdesk rose high with polished staircases leading up to it. Presumably thought as the Captain, he stood at the wheel and looked at nothing but the early sunrise. He was old, but experienced with his old eyes and weathered hands.

The Elgang gathered up on the main desk in front of the main mast. To their left was the aforementioned emergency boats hanging high and tied by ropes and pulleys. Vanessa had seen them off when they entered the ship and signalled the dock boys to unfasten the ropes restraining the ship. It began to move with a certain push towards the sea, steady and straightforward.

Crew members rushed about the deck, managing the sails and other parts of the ship. One of the crew members told the Elgang that living quarters laid below the deck; the entrance was below the quarterdeck. That was where Subtract and Add had retreated to—this gave Subtract a sour look on his face, but he kept it hidden.

"Those two still don't get along well, huh?" sighed Rena. "Brothers should get along well."

"It'll probably take time," said Apple, a shoulder glance at the quarterdeck's door. "Something happened between them."

"You don't say," joined in Aisha. "Well, it's not exactly our job to intervene, but if Subtract tries something reckless again…"

"You mean, try to kill Add again?" questioned Apple. Those words left a bad taste on her mouth still. She would stop Subtract before it came to that and in order to do that… "I'll go check up on Subtract."

Without another word, she headed straight to the living quarters.

Rena furrowed her brows in confusion before she came to a slight realisation, "Apple seems to always hang around Subtract every chance she gets…"

"Then, are they in a relationship?"

Both Rena and Aisha were surprised when Elesis suddenly joined the conversation. She just blinked a couple times at their reaction as if to question them.

"If Apple likes Subtract's company, that could mean something, right?" continued Elesis.

"I don't think we can just conclude that right away…" muttered Aisha.

"Hm, we'll just wait and see," suggested Rena. "Until then, let's enjoy this voyage! It's the first time I've seen a sea this wide!"

Just then, Elsword came walking rather slowly towards the three with a sick look on his face.

"H-hey, did anyone ask Vanessa how long the voyage is?" he asked.

Elesis, Aisha and Rena frowned.

"I don't think she mentioned it," Rena said. "You could've asked her earlier, but I guess that's too late."

"Aw, shit…" swore Elsword. His face suddenly turned green as he rushed towards the side of the boat. He let out a bucket of vomit out to the sea, surprising Aisha.

"Elsword…you have motion sickness?"

* * *

The living quarters were bigger than expected. Apple had thought that living quarters in ships only consisted of hammocks, but the living quarters were split into rooms. The rooms consisted of a bunk bed, a desk and a circular window looking out towards the sea. Of course, she only saw these rooms as their doors were open. The ones to both of her sides were closed and occupied.

She had no idea which room Subtract was in so she activated her sensor. Back at the village, she took Subtract's technology signal. To be polite, she DID ask to do so and Subtract hesitantly gave her his technology's signal. He had implanted a transparent card on one of Apple's drones. She observed it closer and tapped on it. It made a turquoise pulse at her contact, bright and symbolic. Subtract had said the brighter it was, the nearest he was.

So she stepped in front of the left door and tapped the card again. It almost shone blindly and she knocked on the door. The door immediately opened and revealed one of Subtract's Operators who opened the computer. It swiftly withdrew to its master who was huddled up by the table. Apple noticed that something felt strange in the room. Like the time felt off, or the air felt distorted.

Walking closer to Subtract, she saw that Subtract held a small, black cube in his hands and he fiddled around with it. Seemingly not noticing Apple's presence, he muttered to himself.

"Keh, so he was using this on my Time Mode, huh?" He grabbed the cube in his right hand and clenched it tightly, shattering it into pieces. It made the sound of breaking glass as it shattered into black pieces before fading away. The wrong feel of the air disappeared along with the pieces. Turning around, he finally noticed Apple standing there. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Since you muttered. Your Operator opened the door by the way," she replied.

"Heh, I remember configuring it to do that back at Velder. I'll turn it off," he said rather absent-mindedly. Apple stole a glance at the bunk bed before turning to face Subtract. He looked at her with a questioning look.

"Mind if you share your bunk bed?"

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end~! If you like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Replying to a review~!**

**ScorchedEarth82800: I see. I am grateful that you do like this one as well. ;w; But ya don't need to keep repeating that you prefer She is, Forsaken over this (though I'm also happy you like that one). It hurtie ;A;**


	33. Please Don't

"You want to share my bunk bed?" questioned Subtract, repeating her question. Normally, he didn't like the idea of sharing his personal space with someone. It wasn't like he ever shared so it was something he was very unused to. The idea itself was undeniably uncomfortable. He'd refuse right away, but he knew Apple to be very persuasive. Well, persuasive towards him at least.

"Yep, if it isn't too much trouble," she answered.

"There are other rooms you could take, why mines?" he said.

"A bunk bed is meant to be shared so I don't think it's worth wasting space in the other rooms," she replied.

Logically, he agreed with her statement but there were enough rooms to fit everyone. Unless, some of the crew members also shared the rooms. As if on cue, someone else was at the doorway. He wore dark blue sailor clothes and the clothes seemed light. His face was wind-weathered by the salty sea and he stared at the two rather emotionlessly.

"The other rooms down the hallway are being used by some of the sailors. Some of you guys will have to share a bunk bed," said the sailor before he left abruptly.

_What the hell was with that perfect timing, author?!_ **(*coughs violently*)**

Apple stared at Subtract, waiting for a response. He sighed and turned back to his desk, muttering, "Fine, choose any."

With a wide smile, she pointed, "I'll go for the top bunk then."

Subtract almost rolled his eyes at her choice, but refrained. He wasn't currently working on any technology at the moment. Using his half of his Time Mode, he had detected an abnormality in the performance and found it wondering around. A seal engraved by Glaive, which he got rid of shortly afterwards.

He heard footsteps hurrying up behind him and saw Apple peering at his face, observing.

"Subtract, I couldn't notice from afar but your right eye…it's yellow up close. Did you put a screen over your right eye so that it appears blue?" she questioned worriedly. "You've been using Time Mode for quite some time, haven't you?"

"Good job noticing, I have been using it," he answered.

"Then, …how come you're not losing control?"

"I got rid of the seal on it and plus I'm only using half of it, so it's under control."

"A seal? Did you seal it?"

He left the question unanswered and pulled out a couple screens.

"So what are you going to do now? I'm going to work on my tech."

"Then, I'll watch."

Subtract paused and gave her a look, "You're always watching me working on my technology. Why waste your time doing that?"

Apple looked insulted and said, "It's not a waste of time. It's interesting to watch you work."

He sighed, "You're weird."

Apple just enlarged one of her drones and sat on it.

"Well, you did say at Velder that it's my choice on what I want to do, right? Can't say I'm weird if you allowed me the privilege."

"Sure I can. You're weird."

Without waiting for her response, he just started typing on his keyboard and summoned several more screens. Lists of code strings scrolled down on several mini windows as he configured a Mode Apple did not recognise. It seemed to be more mobile and it belonged to OP – Artillery under the name of OP – Commander. She frowned at the name. It was definitely lighter than what he currently fought with and enabled him the capability of flying freely. So, why didn't he use this one instead? Especially the guns…for they have shown several destructive capabilities.

Still, she spoke nothing of it and admired the room itself. It wasn't as old as she thought it'd be. The wooden walls were newly placed and painted with varnish, making it gleam from the sunlight. The circular window was sprayed with sea water and speckles of drops glittered in the sun itself. The bunk bed was firmly built with metal nails in its joints. Blue blankets covered the thin mattresses with no pattern at all, plain and dark. A sturdy ladder was nailed to the side with varnished wood, each steps dappled in blue paint. The round patterns looked almost like big stars stretched across a brown line.

She wanted to explore the rest of the ship in curiosity, but decided against it. Instead, she chose to ask Subtract something she had been bothered with for a long time.

"Subtract…what happened between you and Add?" she asked. She gave a serious look even as Subtract kept typing away. "What made you hate him so much enough to kill him? You…still plan to do that, right?"

He stopped typing and faced her, "What I plan to do is none of your business."

"You're part of the Elgang and Add is also a part of the Elgang. What you're planning to do is all of our business, Subtract."

She came a bit closer, staring at him in his eyes, "Don't kill the only family you have left. Please, it's not worth it."

He sighed to himself and stood up to leave the room, "It's his fault."

And once more, he donned the aura that one could not follow.

* * *

Subtract went up deck to see it mostly empty. One of the crew members had told him some of them went to explore the ship. It was just that big of a ship. He felt almost grateful for the lack of people on the deck. Although, Elesis stood at the bowsprit of the ship with one feet on main deck. Her gaze wandered over the wide expanse of water.

With no goal in particular, he walked towards the main deck and gazed at the slightly darkening waters. A big body of water called the sea, or the ocean. Nothing worth taking note other than it was fatal to technology in particular.

Elesis seemed to know Subtract was behind her, "What do you think of when you see the sea, Subtract?"

"It's fatal to technology," he answered shortly.

She chuckled, "Is that all you think about it?"

"I'm thinking more about how you knew it was me."

"Your presence is a bit negative."

"Ha ha, was that a pun?"

"Maybe."

She chuckled again, making Subtract sigh to himself.

"So, Add gave you your name?"

"He did. I used to have another name."

Elesis stepped off the bowsprit and faced Subtract with a questioning gaze.

"Subject-1020."

She raised her brow considerably in surprise. Subject-1020 wasn't something in her dictionary so she had no clue what kind of name that was. Numbers in a name, how weird could that be?

Subtract turned around, suddenly interested in the ship's masts.

"Subtract," called out Elesis. He looked over his shoulder. "There's going to be a feast downstairs. When one of the crew members tell you, care to join us at the table?"

"I did that last time in Velder, didn't I? If I'm done with my research, I'll join."

"Alrighty then. Make sure to come before all the food's gone!"

* * *

Subtract just went out for some fresh air, Apple wanted to believe. She thought she might have said something wrong, but maybe it was because she pried into something she shouldn't have. Although Subtract recently joined the Elgang, maybe it wasn't wise to talk about his past yet.

"I'll apologise to him when he comes back," she muttered to herself.

"Apologise about what?"

She turned around to see Add standing by the door. He didn't have the usual smirk on his face she usually saw.

"I asked Subtract about his past. He didn't say anything about it."

"Hmph, I'll probably have to confront him about it sooner or later. I did do something unforgivable back then."

He had a look of regret before he returned to his normal expression, "Well, I'm going to go find Eve."

"Go easy on my mother, will you?" Apple smiled. He just left up the stairs.

"Well, I guess I'll go get some fresh air, huh?"

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~! I'd appreciate it owo**

**Also thank you to Seiitou and .927 for following this fanfiction~!**

**Replying to the reviews w**

**GirlyTurtle: Things are heating up, as they say... (wasmypunseenornahXDDDhint:technology)**

**Sky-Of-Silver-Lining: Yes, Subby, Apple is asking for the Sapple ship to sail.**

**ScorchedEarth82800: =w= Ish okay.**


	34. When We Part

Elesis left the deck, leaving Subtract to gather information on the masts. Subtract may not look like it, but most things caught his eye and he observed them rather closely. An insatiable curiousity that came from living in Henir. Since there weren't many mechanical enemies to fight, he had a hand in dissecting his enemies. There was a clear difference between Subtract and Add—that would be, Subtract wasn't a clean freak. At least, when it came to fights. If he got blood stains on himself, he could easily clean it off. If dirt got in his clothes, he'd clean it off easily if it got too bothersome.

"It's quite a big mast, isn't it?"

Apple stood next to Subtract, which surprised him. His eyes widened and she giggled in response.

"You didn't hear my footsteps?" she asked.

He averted his gaze to the mast, replying, "No, I didn't."

"The humans used ships like this back then…although, they were smaller," she said. "The masts depend on the wind to blow into them, moving the ship forward. To decelerate, the masts can be withdrawn."

"I can see that."

Suddenly bored with the masts, Subtract looked at the sea and frowned. The sea was darker than before in one particular area. Apple didn't seem to notice the difference and breathed in the salty air. Something didn't feel quite right. It looked like the air around the ship was darkening and thickened with a saturated presence. _Something is coming from the left side…_

Without warning, Subtract pushed Apple backwards just as something blowed up from the sea. He didn't have enough time to react as a shadow whacked straight into him. Its hands grabbed Subtract's neck, choking him into the sea.

"Subtract!" called out Apple. He was already in the sea, but the length of the shadow lingered into the depths. Apple rushed towards the edge of the ship. There was absolutely nothing she could do as she herself was a Nasod. The water would prevent her from saving Subtract at all cost. "I have to go get the others…!"

* * *

The impact knocked all the air from Subtract, but he managed to close his mouth to stop the water from rushing in. He opened his eyes to see a grinning face baring down at him with crazed, bloodshot eyes. Pockets of air furiously bubbled from its mouth as its distorted laugh vibrated though the darkness.

"I can smell it, I can smell it!" it cackled. "The smell of time and space!"

"Kuh…" The shadow's fingers dug into Subtract's neck, threatening to pierce through. Subtract tried to call on his Operators, but they wouldn't respond underwater. They weren't exactly waterproof.

"Die, die, die, fucking die!" When the shadow choked the last amount of oxygen out of Subtract's chest, his body responded by letting in small amounts of water through his mouth. He felt his own throat close up, trying to stop the water from coming in. Panic had already started to seep in when the bursting pain inside his own head overwhelmed his other thoughts. He no longer had the strength to resist. The contact he wore on his right eye gradually lost function, revealing his yellow eye.

"Like that warden, like that fool!" The shadow's laughs were almost inaudible to Subtract now. His own consciousness was bubbling up to the surface no matter how hard he tried to stay awake. The moment he lost his consciousness, he would die without a doubt and dying was the last thing on his mind. Even the thought of dying like this made him want to laugh. Subtract didn't wake up today, thinking he would die like this. Under the colossal volume of water, he managed a wide grin on his face.

"He laughs in the face of death…! Interesting, you would've made a fine demon! Shame, shame, shame!"

"Kuahaha…I'll show you death-defying, then," chuckled Subtract. He stared at the shadow in its empty sockets. "Now, how would you like to die?"

The water around the two swirled slightly at first before it viciously split apart.

* * *

Seeing how it was almost time for dinner, everyone was loosely gathered in the wide room underneath the deck. The smell of food wafted through the air, gushing around the nailed furnitures. It was such a hearty atmosphere with the crew joining in with the Elgang. People sat at their respective, metal benches with their laughter mixing in with the aromas.

Elesis was leaning on the wall, watching everyone from afar. Something bothered her and she could tell that the Elgang felt the same. In contrast to the hearty atmosphere, a sinister atmosphere took place instead. She felt uneasy and gripped onto the handle of her claymore, trying to figure out what could be wrong. First thing first, Subtract and Apple hadn't joined them in the dining room. The crew were either too busy chatting, or dealing with dinner.

_I should probably go fetch them._ Elesis stood up from the wall with her hand still on her claymore. The sound of steps hurrying down the staircase was brought to Elesis' attention. A pink-head rushed into the room, surrounded in a haze of panic.

"Everyone, please hurry to the deck! Subtract is…" she started before the ship rocked violently. The hearty atmosphere instantly disappeared and the crew members were immediately on caution. The Elgang hurriedly followed Apple up the stairs, understanding even if she didn't finish her sentence. With the rocking of the ship, steps clambering up the stairs hurried unbalanced.

The ship itself was split around the quarterdeck, already dooming the ship to the sea. Monstrous wooden teeth jutted out from the broken edges, splintering and sinking noisily. Whatever split the quarterdeck sunk quickly into the sea as a murky black. Crew members rushed across the deck, readying the emergency boats with ease. Calm expressions were painted onto their faces on the backdrop of chaos.

A crew member approached Elsword, "You're the leader of the Elgang, right? Tell your friends to quickly board the emergency boats! We'll hoist you down with a member to guide the boats to Hamel!"

"We're still missing Subtract!" responded Elsword.

A familiar chuckle resounded through the air as something shot into the sky. Apple narrowed her eyes to the sky, spotting Subtract floating in the sky. Shadowy tentacles lunged out of the sea at Subtract who dodged them with ease.

Aisha's eyes widened at the sight of large tentacles slashing through the sky.

"Is that…a Kraken?!"

* * *

**A/N: Ah, god, finally got this chapter out XD Please review/favourite/follow/share, if ya like this fanfiction so far owo~!**

**Thank you to KantonaSoul for adding this fanfiction to his/her follow~ Also, thanks to AnimeMangaLover35 and Maxxamilium for adding this fanfiction to his/her favourites~! Love ya~!**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**Sky_of_Silver_Lining: Ofc Eve is Apple's mamma =3= The Sapple ship...IT SAILS!**

**Nagiiisa-san: Yesh, it sets forth huehuehue**

**PookyChan: =w= Into the sunset it goes!**


	35. Unexpected Teaming Up

**;A; SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR A LONG TIME I WAS ON HOLIDEHHH! And...heh...I still have tons of homework I haven't touched and it's nearly school...well, fuck. ANYWAYS, HERE'S YOUR LONG-AWAITED CHAPTER SO...HERE! vvv**

* * *

"Shit, this ship isn't going to last!" yelled one of the crew members. "You guys really need to pack into the boats fast, like right now!"

Just as Elsword was going to argue with him, Subtract flashed behind the Elgang with an eerily wide smile on his face. Behind him, the Kraken seemed to be fighting something else.

"You slowpokes can go ahead," he said. "That little shit fuck over there is mine!"

"What the hell are you talking about? We all have to get out of here! Just because you can fly around…" began Elesis before Eve interrupted her.

"Even if Subtract did come with us, that Kraken creature will chase us down in no time."

Elesis gave her a protesting stare, "We can't just leave one of our comrade behind!"

Eve gave Apple a look before suggesting, "Then, Subtract. Can you bestow that flying ability to another?"

Subtract eyed her suspiciously and answered, "I can, why?"

"Give it to Add and let him help you," she responded. "You say you can take down that Kraken, we don't doubt it. However, it's slow with you only if you're only going to toy around with it."

"Keh, it's not like I won't catch up. You guys are going to Hamel and that's where I'll follow."

"Subtract, you don't even know where Hamel is and you're a part of our group. Don't deny help."

He narrowed his eyes and crossed both his arms, giving the air a silent feel. The idea to him was sickening enough and made him curious.

"Even if I accept, what if I kill Add in the process, huh?" he asked.

"Hmph, as if I'd let you kill me that easily," joined in Add. "I have no intention of letting you kill me off and…heh, share the bloody fun, why don't you?"

"Sharing with you is the last thing I want to do," he spat.

"Then, let me go with you two," suggested Apple. "I can support you guys from behind!"

Subtract paused at the suggestion and sighed heavily to himself, "No, you go with the others."

"If I do, you let Add help you," she bargained.

His eyes were narrowed enough, but he managed to narrow it further at the exchange.

"Fine, then," he replied. Apple stepped up close to Subtract and whispered.

"Please don't do anything to Add, okay? We're letting you two fight alone…just, get along with him, alright? Earlier when you left your room, he came along and mentioned that he wanted to make up with you."

Subtract didn't say anything even when she said goodbye and left with the Elgang. Add stood there with an expectant look at his sibling.

Another sigh left Subtract's lips. He pointed with his hand at Add's feet and commanded, "Gravity Denial!"

Add immediately begun floating upwards and flew towards the Kraken without warning. With a raised eyebrow, Subtract thought of his action as a competition.

"Keh, idiot, this creature isn't so much of a competition," he muttered to himself before he followed in pursuit.

The Elgang and the crew members departed in the boat with haste, seeing as the ship was already sinking. With practiced expertise, the ones who paddled hurriedly rowed the boat away from the battle. Most of the Elgang were amazed at how strong and controlled their movements were as they moved ahead. They seemed to move forward without hesitation, knowing where Hamel is without a map.

The atmosphere, although saturated with haste, was tense with hope. Even though, the two brothers may not be the most liked in the group, the Elgang still held a strong sense of camaraderie. Apple was still watching the sinking ship from afar, using her focused lens to watch the two fight against the Kraken. She kept her watch until they were far out of sight and the edge remained a blur.

There was no helping it. The two may be troublesome in their own ways, but they both needed help when time most begged for it. When they found Add who attacked the Elgang head on, he failed to capture Eve who was his goal. The reason they brought him along was out of generousity. After all, the place he encountered them all was on the verge of breaking down.

From there, it seemed that he gave up trying to steal Eve away and just stuck to observing her. To which the latter was very disagreeable about.

Subtract was almost the same as Add, except his goal was to kill him instead. After he agreed to travel with them, he somewhat eased into the group and they learned to trust him. Now, they entrusted them with their safety and hopes. Something that was uneasily left behind.

"Heh, this Kraken…it's playing a game," said Add, noticing. The Kraken stayed in one spot, releasing translucent tentacles in the air. Occassionally, several eyes travelled through them. They would roll around and spot the two easily before retreating back into the water.

"How childish," commented Subtract.

"Oh how I agree."

Subtract flew above the Kraken and laughed, "How about a small cheat? Like the mischievious child I am!"

He whipped out both his hands towards the Kraken's centre.

"Dust Shower!" he bellowed.

A twisting symbol contained by a gigantic circle appeared below him and several stabbing lines showered down onto the Kraken. It started to get petrified, gradually being overwhelmed by the petrification itself.

Add immediately flew down and stood in front of the walls of translucent tentacles.

"Conqueror!" A swirling path of electricity crushed all of them together into pieces before exploding.

To be honest, this was a surprise to Subtract. Not the attack itself, but how they were actually working together to fight a Kraken. He wouldn't have ever imagined something like this to happen—no, he imagined that he would kill Add instead. There was none of that here. He held onto Apple's exchange like a gloating excuse.

"That takes care of its eyes, now for its core…" muttered Subtract.

The petrification wore off and the Kraken let out an ear-splittering roar, flinging Add into the air. Its colossal arm tentacles retreated into the water before it bursted through the water, joining together in a ferocious frenzy. When it was done, the Kraken itself launched into the air and became a gargantuan snake.

Add blinked a couple times and stared at it in disgust, "Is it a Kraken, or not? What the fuck is it doing now?"

They both watched it as it jumped into the air and flew without any wings.

"Hmph, reminds me of an Eastern dragon," pointed out Subtract before yelling, "Now, where's the fire, you asshole?!"

"Heh, stage two."

* * *

**A/N: And that's the start of the Brotherly Arc-/shot Well, if ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And thank you to Code-Battle-Seraph for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows~! Thank you to Rsur Thorai for adding this fanfiction to his/her favourites~!**

**Replying to the reviewers~owo!  
**

**Sky-of-Silver-Lining: Ready for the butt-rhape-/shot**

**Simon Hinori: O/O Thank you for the comment XD I'm sorry for the wait~!**


	36. Fight The Dragon

The dragon split open its mouth with a vicious sucking noise. Ocean water begun to flow into its mouth, draining the sea and creating a hole in the centre. Wind blew atrociously into its mouth and sucked the clouds from the sky. It started sucking in the two siblings rather quickly.

"Fuck! Motion Blocker, Platform!" commanded Subtract. He summoned a platform that just stopped the two from entering the dragon's gaping mouth. "It's doing a water breath, huh? Kahaha, haven't fought a dragon in a long time! The last time I fought one, it was a bone dragon!"

Add didn't know what Subtract was talking about it, but it made him wonder. When he was gone for eight years, he only hinted that he lived in a place in space and time. However, he could hardly wonder any further about that. After all, they were up against a dragon. A dragon that hadn't been spotted for hundreds of years. It was thanks to the books in the library that he knew what they were. They had existed before the time of Elrios, when the land was still called, "The Land Forsaken by God". Dragons often roamed the land and burned down any life forms they could for entertainment. Now one was here, now one was alive before him. What an interesting specimen it would be. Unfortunately, how uninteresting it would be to see it fall. Still, he wasn't about to trade his life for a curiousity as ancient as a dragon.

After it gathered water from below and above, it breathed its water breath violently at them.

"Setting: Repulse!" The platform glowed before it instantly rejected the water breath, reflecting it back at the dragon albeit with less ferocity.

"Add, the area below its head is its weakpoint. You know a distraction we could use?" Subtract asked.

"Hoho, relying on me rather fast, are we?" sneered Add.

"A dragon isn't something you can fight alone without a good distraction—yes, fuck, I'm relying on you for once, shithead! Enjoy it while you can 'cause it'll only be this one time!" he yelled.

"Then, we simply throw explosions in its face. Why don't we give that a test drive?" he suggested. "Something like this…"

He flashed towards the dragon's head and let out a burst of electrical bullets in its face, "Pulse Cannon!" It did its job of releasing smoke and scant damage in its face. Without delay, Subtract quickly aimed for its lungs with a summoned blade. He quickly realised that the lungs were covered in armoured scales.

"Fuck, and you call yourself a former kraken?" he muttered to himself.

"Add! Distract him further!" he commanded.

"Keh, giving me orders, are we?"

"And while you're at it, prepare to back away a bit!"

Subtract observed the scales on its lungs for a little longer, trying to search for any weaknesses. There were none so far, which made him wonder what sort of creature this was. Maybe when it died, he could take a sample of it and study it. He would save all the likely dissections and examinations for later when he reached Hamel. Right now, he was focused solely on taking it down.

So far, there wasn't a chink in its armour. He reasoned quickly that he would make one.

"Rift's rage!" he roared, causing multi-dimensional bursts at the lungs. The dragon roared in anger and lunged downwards, hurling Subtract into the sea. Not having enough time to utter a sound, he had the air knocked out of him in less than a second.

He felt like he was drowning at that moment, once more again under that creature's influence. Someone wanted him dead, he realised that. Now, they were on the act, but he couldn't let it end that way. Even so, he felt his consciousness whacked out of its physical proportions. He saw the ship next to him sinking further and further into the dark depths. The wooden components raining underwater looked strange and his mind wondered. It wondered until Add dived down after him and grabbed him by his arm before desperately pulling him out under the heavy volume of water.

"Geez, I let my eyes off of you for one second and you're drowning," he said.

"Heh, trying to sound brotherly? Stop it, you're making me sick," spat Subtract. He gazed up at the dragon who awaited them in the sky and he noticed the chink in its lung's armour. It didn't seem to notice. Subtract widely smiled and laughed, "Looks like that shitty dragon will go down with ease."

"Huh?"

"Its lungs are its fatal weakpoint. Its armour is flawed so all I need is a good aim."

"Easy enough. Phantom Seeker!" Add sent out two blade drones, aiming for the dragon's head. It effectively clamoured about its head, causing it to roar in frustration. Its arms were too small to swing them away so it tried breathing in water, but couldn't concentrate properly enough.

Subtract quickly flew over to its lungs, following its frenetic motions precisely.

"This could get messy…" Subtract started to compress the dimension around his fingers before concentrating it on one point. "Planetary Devastation."

A small ball was formed as he threw it at the armour's flaw point. It embedded itself within and slowly entered the beast's lungs. Subtract quickly flew away to a far distance along with Add who followed.

The dragon let out an angry roar before sucking in water from both the sea and the sky. Something inside it exploded, causing the dragon's outward appearance to throb. The water it sucked dropped heavily back into the sea, splashing violently below the beast.

It started to suck into itself, turning into a small ball similar to the one Subtract threw. Ripping through itself, all organs, blood, bones and skin all gravitated to a singular point before it couldn't hold itself any longer and exploded with a devastating force.

"Oh, shit, I didn't think the shockwave would be that big—fly as fast as you fucking can!" yelled Subtract, going in the opposite direction of the explosion. "Get hit by that and you'll end up like that dragon!"

"Why the fuck didn't you tell me that sooner before you implanted it?!"

"Like I said, I didn't think it'd be that big!"

"You idiot!"

* * *

**A/N: Well, there's the end the end of the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And thank you to Mei Springphoenix, NakaruSoul and Simon Hinori for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows (and favourites)~! :D**

**ScorchedEarth82800 - Yep XD Me is back~!**


	37. Out on a Limb

**LONG ASS CHAPTER AHEAD OVER 3000 WORDS HAHAIHAOHOFDAHSHASOD...chapters might be that long starting from here, meaning they'll take longer to squish out XD ALSO, read A/N...plox.**

* * *

The explosion reached far and further still, stalking the two on their hind. Subtract really didn't expect his new move to be so destructive. With one look behind him, he saw the exposed seabed of the sea and the wall of the sea circling around.

"It's lessening, we've escaped it," Subtract observed.

"You sure this time?" responded Add.

"I may have not properly predicted this experiment, but I can at least tell the outcome of one."

"Jeez, since when did you make this move...?"

"None of your business. All that matters is that it's destructive and goes on for a kilometre, or more."

"Keh, you owe it to a near victim."

Subtract glowered at him and stopped flying forward.

"Think...escaped? ...Idiocy...incompetence...!"

"What?!" Turning around, a black mass of smoke shot through the air aimed at Subtract solely. "He's still alive, this fucker!"

He quickly erected a barrier between him and the mass, but it was too hastily created to have any effect. It smashed through and took his right arm in.

"Fuck!" he swore, trying to desperately pull out his arm. It only reached the bottom of his shoulder before it dematerialised, taking Subtract's arm along with it.

* * *

Apple felt worried, even when she reached the shores of the Fluone Continent. They all traveled to Hamel with the crew members who acted as guidance. Captain Penensio was at the entrance to greet them, to which Elesis took the pleasure of returning it.

She turned back from the city, looking at where they came from. It was as if she expected Subtract and Add to appear there right now, but that was too impossible a task. A kraken was an unidentifiable creature in her eyes, but she had the pleasure of Aisha explaining to her what it was.

"In the waters between the continents, the Kraken has been known to exist before the time of the El. It's basically a gigantic squid with the arms of an octopus. The Kraken was known to sink many ships in its own region called the Triangle, which is so strange. We were never meant to have met the Kraken there in the first place...no ships have crossed the Triangle ever since."

This only proved to worry Apple more, but she kept the expression hidden. There was honestly nothing she could do now.

"We have prepared your lodgings, but the streets are a bit busy at the moment. Since we've evacuated citizens from Resiam, everything is busy," said Penensio. "I apologise, Red Knight. We weren't entirely prepared."

Elesis looked flustered and stuttered, "Y-you don't need to apologise! Geez, C-Captain..."

"Ha ha, you were always so modest."

"I don't want you telling me that."

"Alright, I won't."

"So, how long will we be here at the entrance?"

"Under an hour, or so. Meanwhile, you just have to wait here until we're able to take you to your lodgings."

Captain Penensio smiled slightly before turning to talk to an officer. Apple enlarged one of her drones and sat on it, turning to one of her drones to stare at the transparent card struck to it. She tapped it and it only responded faintly to her touch. Out of curiousity, she tapped all over its surface until a turquoise button appeared near the bottom. With a frown, she tapped the button which in turn enlarged the card itself.

"What is this supposed to be?"

A pink sound line metre showed itself on the card screen and when it immediately activated, Apple heard an ear-splitting scream. She knew it belonged to Subtract because she recognised the voice, but she couldn't believe her own ears. She didn't want to believe it. Whatever was happening to Subtract, she didn't want to believe. She didn't want to hear. Quickly turning off the sound, she backed away from her drone.

The Elgang rushed near her to prevent her from falling.

"What was that? Subtract's scream? What the hell is happening to him...?" questioned Raven.

"I don't...I don't know...whatever it is, he's in danger!" she responded hysterically. "We have to help him!"

"We can't," said Elesis.

Apple instantly turned to Elesis, "Why?!"

"We'll be putting the crew members on danger and we cannot afford that when we need as many men as possible here. And plus, Add is there. He will protect him, I promise."

"I guess so, but..."

"There's nothing we can do, but wait for their return. Until then, let's just wish for their safety, shall we?"

* * *

Subtract's whole right arm had been violently ripped off, along with its robotic implants. The ripping sensation of bones breaking, tendons shattering and veins splitting apart. His whole robotic arm, which had his nerves connected to, was lost once again. He screamed out in pain, quickly covering his bloody stump of an arm. Losing concentration over Gravity Denial, he felt himself fall but was immediately caught.

Add caught him in his arms without hesitation. The blood soiled his white clothes, but he didn't mind them at all. What he did mind was the amount of blood was spraying out of Subtract's stump. If he left it without any medical treatment, Subtract would easily die.

"Operator...!" he yelled, holding back the agony in his throat.

The healing Operator flew over in an instant, applying the healing force without delay. It healed way too slowly to stop the flow of blood gushing out.

"Che...too slow..." Subtract quickly opened up his storage and selected a bandage tape. It whirled out of the screen, tumbling into his hand before he quickly wrapped up his stump before pulling at the end.

He looked at Add who seemed to be staring at horror, as if he was seeing something else. In his own mind, he remembered the entire memory of watching his parents getting killed before him. The amount of gore and blood, how the arms and legs were chopped off one by one, and how their bodies were mutilated before he was driven insane. The only reason he could regain his composure was the fact that at least one of his family was alive. His brother was alive, he remained alive just to be seen and left behind.

"Oi, you idiot, what are you staring at me like that for? I'm alive," said Subtract, managing to snap Add out of it. "Now, this is just a temporary procedure. I'm no medical expert, so I don't know if it'll get infected or not. We've got to get to Hamel and the way to do that..."

Add sighed slightly in relief and pointed to one of Subtract's Operators, "Is to track Apple down, right?"

"Uh...yeah...wait, how the fuck did you know I put a tracker on her?"

Add sighed again, "Because we're freaking brothers, you idiotic moron. Something shone on one of Apple's drones."

"How bothersome. Operator, open up a communication line to Apple and her track signal."

One of his Operators beeped in compliance.

"Communication line history: opened once. Communication line, opening and tracking signal now."

It was opened? Subtract didn't like the thought of that.

"When was it opened?"

"Around four minutes ago."

"Fuck."

The Operator beeped three times, showing a familiar transparent card. A button appeared and he quickly pressed it. Gradually showing, a turquoise sound line metre appeared. Immediately afterwards, the Operator floated flat and showed a compass pointing to Apple's signal.

Add saw the arrow and starting flying in that direction silently.

"Hello? Is this Subtract?! Are you okay?! I heard you screaming from the transparent card and I thought you were..." started Apple.

"Dead? Too bad, I'm still here."

"Don't say something like that. Of course, I'm glad you're still there!"

"..."

"So, what happened to you?"

"I just lost my right arm, nothing life threatening."

He said it frankly, so matter of factly like it didn't matter. To Apple, that didn't sit well with her. It was strange because she was supposed to be a machine, a Nasod. Then again, she had an emotion circuit installed. She just didn't think she'd be this sensative.

"You just lost your arm?! That's a big deal, have you wrapped it up properly?"

Subtract looked at his arm, which stopped bleeding. There was only a red stain of blood showing. It felt like the pain had lessened and there was a burning sensation.

"Of course, I have. I don't have any plans on dying from blood lost. Anyways, I'll be in Hamel soon. If you didn't know..."

"Because of this tracker on my drone?"

"How the heck do both of you know?"

"I'm not naive, Subtract. This card was to track your signal, why not mine? And what do you mean both?"

"Never mind. So you guys arrived in Hamel already? That means there isn't much to cover then."

"The crew members were very fast in rowing...I'm not so sure..."

"Yeah whatever, we'll be there before sunset."

Subtract closed the communication line rather hurriedly. He didn't know what to make of the conversation. She was worried, but why? It wasn't as if he didn't know that Nasods had emotion circuits, but maybe it was because he didn't know to what extent it worked. Subtract himself never received any care, or got to know what it felt like.

For him, his eight years at Henir's was cold and unforgiving. Cold in that no love was ever shown from his supposed guardian who named himself the Administrator. Having been driven insane by torture, he never specifically remembered regaining his sanity. It was as if it all melted into the void of a being he was.

Just a being searching for a reason, searching for the one who abandoned him. To exact the justice the scumbag deserved, what he had always been running from. Other than this, Subtract knew naught of what love was or how to gain it. For nearly a decade, he went on with a single emotion with an empty carcass unknowingly searching for some sort of warmth.

Then, had he found something like that? From a tale he had read, was love really as warm and all-compassing? Surely, Apple was a curious subject. The only reason he placed that tracker was not caution, rather curiousity. Apple was so similar to a human with her emotions, yet her own existence was quite the opposite.

Wanting to know, not want to know, what sort of feeling was this he wondered exhilarated.

Throughout all this thinking and reminiscing, Subtract didn't realise Add transferred him over to his Dynamos. It was only when the constant whirring pulled him out of the whirlpool of thoughts did he realise. Hopping off with ease, Add noticed and slowed down.

"You alright to walk already?" he asked.

"I lost an arm, not a leg," he replied. "Think I can see an edge over there."

When he pointed, there was indeed an edge of land ahead. It was a shimmering white, contrasting with the darkening sky. The sun laid out its orange glow towards their destination. Subtract saw through all of that, though. The shimmering white was just a former husk of what it was. It shimmered, yes, but there was something more overwhelming behind it. A black swarm laid on its hind, ominously glaring and slowly overcoming the light.

The Demons had done their mark on the continent and was slowly taking over it. That was what the Elgang for. A measly eleven people sent to stop an entire invasion that even an army couldn't stop. Everyone knew that, but signed up as being the Elgang sent out to stop the Demon Invasion from conquering Elrios. Even Subtract knew the magnitude of the invasion, even if all of the members of the Elgang were undoubtlessly powerful, eleven might be far from enough to stop it.

All this negative thinking, then again, I am Subtract. It was just a name, but that was enough to detest it. The origin would never leave his thoughts without a painful sensation of forgetting. It couldn't be any other name. Nothing else would've fit better.

He wouldn't forget. Eight years ago would never have been forgiven without the price of blood. Yet, he didn't shed it. There was only one reason he didn't want to admit. It made him weak, appear weak, be weak. That was something he couldn't ever afford.

"Eight years ago," started Subtract. Add stopped in his tracks, silent. "Why?"

"If I told you, it wouldn't be counted as a reason," he responded.

Subtract narrowed his eyes, "Say it anyway."

He wanted to know even if he couldn't accept it. At least, at the very least, it might give some peace of the mind. Or if it didn't, it would give him more of a reason to kill his older brother.

Add sighed to himself and looked upwards, hands in his pocket.

"I was scared," he answered. The next thing Add met was the surface of the water splashing harshly all around him. The painful agony stabbing into his back and the force of the water smashing into his face. Coughing out the water, he quickly turned around only to be met with a choking sensation on his neck. Subtract was on him with a summoned blade pointed downwards to his head.

"Is that right? Then, should you die here to face up to that fear?" he questioned. There wasn't an expression on Subtract's face, he just stared and was poised for the kill.

"I can't die here yet."

"Why would that be?"

"I have to save someone."

"That would be our parents, right?"

"…"

"You're a fucking idiot."

"I am, but I'll do it anyway."

"Keh, because we're brothers, huh? Both shitheads aiming for a similar goal. How funny is that?"

Subtract released Add and shattered the blade.

"I'm not going to save our parents. What I aim for is to save those two," said Subtract. "To me, they were more of a family than you three could ever be. You caused their deaths as well."

Add just stood up without responding. He didn't know what to say. This was the one time that he didn't act on his own insanity, he felt clearer but guilty still. A guilty conscience that plagued him in that library until he finally let go of his own sanity. Now? There was only a heavy feeling in his chest.

"Ah~ I don't know why I just don't kill you here and now. Would it really be that hard?" he sighed.

"Hmph, you wouldn't dare because of what you promised to Apple, right? Because you and her are-" started Add.

"Wha…?! You shut up! Eve and you are basically-"

"Shut the hell up! I'm just interested in her functions!"

"Yeah, sure, the way you look at her is-"

"Aaaaaaaaaaargh! Shut! Up!"

"You know what?!"

"What?!"

"Let's just get this flying over and done with!"

"Fine!"

* * *

When they arrived on the shore, Subtract just stayed silent while thinking on the way. He felt confused. Undeniably confused. He only learnt the basic characteristics of love, but he never thought them important. He didn't have such a feeling towards anyone, or at least he thought he didn't.

Shaking those thoughts away, he looked ahead to see the Elgang waiting at the entrance to a city. As soon as Apple saw him, she came charging at Subtract and wrapped her arms around him.

"Wha…!" Not knowing how to react, he just stared at Apple who honestly was a bit heavy.

"You had me worried, you!" she said.

"Over what…seriously, it's just my arm," he mumbled.

She let go of him and stared closely at his wound. It had stopped bleeding since then, but the red stains were still present. They appeared fresh and crimson dark.

"We have to get it properly treated."

* * *

"Jeez, a kraken that turns into a water dragon? I've never heard of something like that," said Aisha. "Back in my home town, we summoned creatures to tame and train with."

"You fight creatures?" questioned Rena. "Even though they're not demons?"

"I didn't mean we kill them, we just train with them and let them return."

"Ah, that's a relief. We normally train against Ents back in the Elven world. Due to the massive amount of nature el energy in our world, they naturally heal back their wounds."

"Regenerative creatures, huh? Oh, I got a good idea. Take me to your world when this whole Demon Invasion is over and done with!"

"Uh…that's a bit complicated…I mean, I can't just invite you without permission."

"You mean there's some sort of process?" asked Raven, leaning against the wall.

"Oh, how's Subtract doing?" responded Rena.

"His wound has been treated properly, but…" pursed Raven. "He wants to implant a new arm without waiting to recover first."

"Huh? Shouldn't we go check on him then?"

Raven sighed, "And he doesn't want anyone to check up on him. He's locked the door."

"Jeez, why has he got to go reckless like that? Kinda reminds me of you sometimes, Raven," said Rena, adding in a playful tone. Raven avoided her eyes awkwardly. Rena only laughed and patted him on his shoulder before following him.

* * *

Subtract honestly felt a bit annoyed. People were at his door, trying to get in for numerous reasons. He never really liked it when people asked him concerning questions. Just thinking about it reminded him of Glaive, and to be honest, he never really liked being bothered.

To be honest, he never comprehended that he was the type people would be worried for. Unknowing of the reason why, he could only try to take care of himself. He didn't think people should be worrying about him because he wasn't specifically important in the group. The Elgang could easily survive on their own without him because they were just that capable. He could've gone back to Henir's Time and Space without a further reason to live. It would've been easier.

He sighed to himself and unwrapped the new bandages, letting them fall delicately to the floor.

"Operator, prepare arm implants and perform the implantation."

The wound was still flesh red, oozing small droplets of blood and clear substances.

"If you're not going to open this door, then there's no point going through it in the first place," said Add.

"Huh?! What do you mean by that?!" questioned Elsword. "It's the only way in."

"Heh, not when you can just…do this…!"

A warping sound ensued to the side of the door and eventually purple cracks began to appear in the wall. The cracks widened and stretched out before the middle gave way to a portal. Subtract whistled, "Hoh, so he's able to make portals now?"

It wasn't a nice thought. Glaive was particularly interested in people with dimensional powers and he was probably watching by now. Glaive was never a good person to begin with and Subtract knew that best. _Just how much experiments did I manage to survive back then…_ Subtract narrowed his eyes at the portal as Add came in. _And it's not something I'd like to witness again._

"Jeez, you fucker, what the heck you think you're doing without waiting to recover?" he said.

"It's easier this way. If it fully recovers, it's more painful to open up the wound again," Subtract simply replied. His Operators beeped, signalling their acquisition. Subtract took a step back and sat on a chair, readying himself. "Plus being without an arm brings me out on a limb."

"Erk, your puns are bad, mind you stop?"

"Che, you dicktard."

"Fucktard."

"Shitard."

"You guys stop swearing at each other in there!" Apple hopped through the portal with a grumpy look on her face.

Subtract let out a hmph before turning his face away.

"I'll stay here instead and you go Add," she instructed. Add just shrugged his shoulders and quickly exited through the portal, closing it. "Jeez, both of you, with your dimensional powers. It's dangerous y'know."

"I already had it, but for him, I agree."

"Huh? You had it, since when?"

"… Why are you here again?"

"Because I won't let you go through this alone. Such an operation without proper guidance."

Apple sat next to Subtract and without warning, curled her hand in his.

"I heard this makes it less painful."

Subtract yanked his hand away.

"Don't be silly."

"It's true, come on, try it for once."

"Che, you're bothersome you know that?"

Apple only smiled and beckoned. Rolling his eyes, he curled his hand around hers.

* * *

**A/N: And a d'awwww end to the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And yeah, ...releases might be a bit hard to pump out especially because of school. And school is piling all their workload on all of us so...yeeeeeeeeee...*cries***

**And thanks to ChillingLord for adding this fanfic to his/her follows~! OWO**

**Replying to the review:**

**Yeelimso: lololololololol**


	38. A New Member

**Just a reminder: I reply to reviews down below in the A/N Section.**

* * *

"I apologise for waking you this early, but I have an important announcement to make."

The Elgang gathered drowsily around Captain Penensio who stood a few metres from the doorway. He looked rather hurried as his chest ran up and down quite fast. Quickly straightening up, he grabbed his breath as fast as he could.

"Prince Seiker, member of the Seiker family who protect Hamel City, has summoned you to the cast-" started Penensio.

"Captain Penensio, are you in here?!" called out someone. A soldier rushed into the room with panic on his face. "There is trouble at the Hamel Entrance! Sir Helputt is attacking the city!"

"What?! Sir Helputt? Prince Seiker is…?!"

"Prince Seiker already went to the frontlines! We need reinforcement!"

Captain Penensio turned to the Elgang with a grim look on his face.

"I'll explain the situation later, but we must all hurry to the Entrance!"

"Right, let's go, guys!" said Elsword.

"I didn't think action would come this soon," chuckled Add. "Subtract and Apple are staying back, right? Then, it'll just be all of us here going!"

* * *

The front lines were a blazing battlefield with distant sounds of roaring. When the Elgang arrived, casualties had already taken place. Soldiers laid dead everywhere, overflowing the air with the smell of blood and metal. It mixed together in a revolting mixture of an ocean.

"How dare you all challenge the demons?! I will fucking kill you all, rip you all to pieces, blast you to smithereens!" roared a colossal figure in the midst of the battlefield.

"This is horrible…" commented Ara. "Already this much casualties from just one person? Who is this Helputt?"

"Father, please! Please, come to your senses! Father!" yelled out a long-haired girl. She carried a cannon in her hands and wore white armour like a sentinel. However, she was covered in many cuts and bruises. Her armour shattering under the many hits she received. She looked like she was on her last limb.

"P-prince Seiker! N-no!" shouted a dying soldier.

"Fuck, we have to hurry and save the girl. Whoever she is, she is no match for this guy!" said Raven, hurrying into the field.

"Right! We aren't going to let no one else get killed!" bellowed Elsword, running alongside Raven. "Aisha, can you perform a distraction?!"

"Oh, I can do more than that!" responded Aisha. She quickly teleported over to Helputt and encased him in a spell. "Binding Circle!"

Teleporting away, Elsword and Raven rushed towards Helputt.

"You think this can bind me? You fools!" Helputt let out a bellowing roar, "Iron Howl!"

A blue-coloured sound wave smashed into the two, paralysing them to their bones. They dropped uselessly onto the ground like dolls, not moving an inch.

"He broke from my binding?!" panicked Aisha. "But, how…!"

"Don't lose your cool, Aisha, goddamnit!" yelled Add. "Eve, can you do your Space Wrench?"

"Hmph, imbecile, who are you to command me?" said Eve. Nonetheless, she hurried up to Helputt and summoned her servant, Oberon. "Space Wrench!"

Oberon shot forth a x-shaped shockwave attack almost immediately on Helputt, pushing him back forcefully. Rena narrowed her eyes and took a step forward, arching back her bow.

"Crazy Shot!" She shot forth a maddening amount of energy, encasing Helputt in a furious cage of El energy.

"Rena, Ara!" called out Eve. The two nodded and hurried to carry Elsword and Raven back. They had already recovered enough to move.

"We need to grab the girl and run! We can't fight this guy the way we are right now!" ordered Elsword. The girl had already collapsed by then, but her hand was tightly gripped around her cannon.

"But, he'll go after Hamel!" said Ara.

"No…he doesn't plan that," started Raven. Helputt glared at all of them, but stopped. With a final shot at them, he started walking away.

"Space Distortion!" commanded Aisha, twisting space to create a distortion. It sucked in the projectile without difficulty.

"He didn't give off that much hostility, other than towards the girl," finished Raven. "We best get her to the infirmary, she seems very injured."

Captain Penensio led them all to the Hospital in the city. After taking the girl to a bed, Captain Penensio thanked them profusely.

"Thank you for saving the Prince," he said as he bowed.

"No worries, we just did as we were…wait, Prince?!" said Elsword. "But, isn't this a girl?"

* * *

The Prince was lying in a bed, unconscious. His wounds had been treated with bandages and such, his armour taken off and sent off to repairs. As of this moment, he was wearing hospital robes.

"Hm? No, this is Prince Seiker, protector of Hamel," corrected Penensio. "I can see how you would make that mistake, but he does give off a manly aura of some sort…"

"As I thought, what you say is true, Penensio," said Elesis. "Heh, as I remember, Captain. You have a very good judgement of people."

"As do you, Elesis."

"M-me? H-hmph! Of course, who do you think I am?"

"Elesis?"

"Nothing! Shouldn't we focus on the situation at hand? What was with the business with Sir Helputt? Why was he attacking Hamel? Isn't he also a Seiker? Sworn to protect Hamel with their own body and soul?"

Captain Penensio's eyes lowered a little, giving a look at the Prince.

"Yes, he was the first to lead the battle against the Demon Invasion, but after so much exposure from the Dark El…he lost his mind to the Demons. Since Prince Seiker heard of the news, he has never taken anything easy. He was raised to protect Hamel, so to find out that his own father will destroy Hamel…he couldn't take it and rushed into battle without a care. You see, he has always adored his father who had such a strong mentality, but alas, even Helputt the White Colossus has lost to the Demons. Sometimes, it makes me wonder if any of us are strong at all."

Elesis gritted her teeth and walked up to Penensio.

"We are strong, Captain. Sir Helputt stayed strong until the end, and we're no short of his courage. I understand the situation now and we are rather lucky he has spared us. The Demons have probably called him back…"

Elesis curled her hand into a fist.

"To think that the Demons are controlling such a proud and strong-willed man like a puppet! This is a disgrace to the Senace Kingdom itself!"

She punched the wall next to her, causing a dent.

"I won't let them soil Elrios any further! Anymore is…!"

"Calm down, Elesis," said Ara, looking concerned. "We just need to focus on what we can do now. We'll have to wait for Prince Seiker to recover."

Penensio turned to leave, "I'll fortify the city's defences. After losing so much men like that, we're rather vulnerable right now. We'll need to train more young men as well."

Elsword and Raven stood up from their seats.

"We'll come with you too, Captain! We'll help train the soldiers," volunteered Elsword.

"I'd like to join, as well," said Raven.

"Very well," replied Penensio with a smile. "First, I'd like to test you two, would that be alright?"

"That's certainly alright with me! Right, Raven?"

"Indeed, sounds interesting."

The three left the room, leaving the room to silence. Rena sat besides the Prince.

"Poor boy, to lose his father to the Demons like this," she muttered. "This tragedy needs to stop repeating."

"Demons have always had the foul nature of dragging people into their ranks," said Eun. "We'll all have to keep our determination together, or we'll end up like them."

"We won't…end up like that," said Aisha. "We can't. I hate these Demons so much. Do none of them understand the pain of fighting possessed loved ones? Especially what Prince Seiker went through, it must've been so hard to find out!"

"Hmph…that just meant this Helputt was weak, then. If he was so strong-willed, he would've stopped using such a retarded armour like that. It makes people susceptible to intense Dark El. Cheh, how stupid of him," said Add, folding his arms. Immediately afterwards, he was met with a hard shove to the ground. A light weight was pressed on top of him.

"Don't you mock father like that! You know nothing!"

"Prince Seiker!" Rena stood up hurriedly.

"Father was strong! He fought as hard as he could to hold back the Demons all by himself! He let all his comrades run back to safety and didn't…didn't even accept reinforcements! He has always protected his comrades! So don't you say anything…he's strong, he is strong!" yelled the Prince.

"If he was strong…then why didn't he accept those reinforcements? People like him depend on comrades, and comrades depend on people like him. A leader does not fight a battle without his men. So, if he refused all those reinforcements and let his comrades run with tails between his legs, doesn't that make him quite weak? Such a shitty leader."

"You…you…don't know anything…so…" the Prince fainted on top of him, not saying another word.

"And seriously, he's light as a feather. I wonder how such a girl-looking Prince like this can wear a heavy armour like that? Sheesh, he even smells like a girl."

"I would suggest you stop smelling him, you idiot. Are you, perhaps, attracted to him?" said Eve, looking displeased and slightly jealous.

"Wha…! No! Heck, no!" Add gently pushed the Prince off of him. Rena hurried to carry the Prince back into the bed.

"Jeez, Prince Seiker did you in before I could," sighed Elesis. "I'm going to check up on Subtract and Apple back at the inn before I lose my composure. But…Add…"

She stopped at the door and looked over her shoulder, "You've grown quite a bit, still."

Exiting the room, she left the room to a short-lived silence.

"Add, you have a tendency to tick off people, you know that?" said Rena.

"Keh, you mean I have a tendency to tell the truth. In that case, it's for the best and worse."

"Anyways, how long do you tend to lie on the ground? Do you like getting dirt all over your clothes, or something?" said Eve, narrowing her eyes.

"What? Do you want to lie down here with me?" teased Add.

Eve's cheeks slightly reddened as she looked away, "N-no, you fool. Do you want me to slap you?"

"I'll pass."

* * *

A bandage laid fallen on the ground surrounded by splatters of blood. It was starting to dry on the ground, creating a sticky layer of blood. Someone laid unconscious on the bed with his newly attached arm beside him. The room was rather plain, making the blood stand out more than it should. It created a ghastly contrast due to the amount of blood soaking into the ground.

Apple sat beside him with a worried look on her face. During the operation, she heard cries of agony that she had never heard before. It was terrifying to her and reminded her of the war decades of years ago. The War of the Demise, it was called. When almost every races waged war against each other to gain the ultimate power. Now, that war was starting anew. Nasods were out of the count, long distinguished of their power to fight.

It lay to the Demon and Humans to fight each other, clashing until one comes out a winner. To be honest, she wasn't sure if the Humans would win to begin with. They may have taken back several territories, but the Demons were planning something dangerously ominous. It was said that the Demons were gathering all the Priestesses and rallying up on the Fluone Continent, planning something akin to the world's domination and destruction.

She would be lying if she said she wasn't scared. The Elgang were just a small group of fighters, but they weren't an army. _What if we are overwhelmed?_ They couldn't possibly solve anything and everything Elrios has to offer. _The only thing we can do…_ The only thing the Elgang could do... _Is to fight until our last breath._ To Apple, that was a scary aspect.

A rattling knock bore itself on the door, making Apple turn around.

"Yes, who is it?" she asked. Apple just remembered the puddle of blood on the ground when the door opened.

"Yo, how's Subtract doing?" It was Elesis. Her own claymore laid straight on her back as she came in smiling. "Elgang had to go out and fight. Seems like the Prince Seiker wanted to see us, but he was busy fighting…his father."

"Huh? His father? What exactly went on?"

"His Father, the White Colossus of Hamel, was taken over by the Demons. His armour absorbed too much Dark El. He attacked Hamel as of a result and nearly killed his own son. We managed to save him, so he's in the hospital resting up."

"That's horrible, indeed. At least, he's safe."

Elesis frowned slightly, noticing that there was no hint of caring in Apple's voice. She waved the thought away and pointed to the puddle of blood, "Want me to help you clean this up?"

"Ah, yeah, sure. Forgot about cleaning it."

"So, did Subtract faint? It must've been a horrendous operation—I mean, implanting metal into your already wounded stump of an arm…gives me shivers for sure," said Elesis.

"Yeah…" muttered Apple. She unconsciously held Subtract's hand and fiddled around with it.

"Hmm…Apple, are you and Subtract possibly lovers?" asked Elesis.

Apple widened her eyes and immediately let go of Subtract's hand. Her face reddened immensely as she stuttered, "N-no, what are you t-talking about? We aren't l-l-lovers…I mean…we're just f-friends, right?"

Elesis narrowed her eyes mischieviously.

"Hoh? Really, now? After holding his hand like that and almost divebombing him back at the shore…" said Elesis, stretching out the end. "I couldn't possibly be sure you two aren't already…"

"Already what?" The two turned the heads to the bed to see Subtract awake and sitting up. "Jeez, you two are loud. Couldn't even get a peaceful rest."

"Sorry, sorry, Subtract. Apple and I were just talking about y…" started Elesis. Apple quickly covered Elesis' mouth in a heavy, whacking motion.

"We were just talking about what happened at the entrance, weren't we, Elesis?" Apple looked at Elesis with a smile, but her eyes were definitely not smiling. Elesis could detect the amount of aminosity under that smile and nodded hurriedly.

"Hmmm? Ah well, no matter. So what went on while I was out?"

* * *

"And I'm imagining our dear leader, Elsword, will recruit him," said Subtract sarcastically. "First is a Queen, a princess, and now a prince. We're now a group of royalty."

The three were walking outside, talking amongst themselves. People were walking around rather cautiously with their heads down and hands to themselves. They were scared and smelled like fear. The town had an aura of a ghost town haunting its white streets and buildings; a serene town drowning in insecurity.

"Well, the more members we can gather, the better, right?" said Apple. "I mean, there's just eleven of us so far."

Subtract glanced at Apple. _So she's been insecure about our numbers as well, huh?_ He felt the same, of course, because he never believed in the silly idea that fighting alone solves everything. He may have used to have thought that way, but thanks to that, the number of deaths he experienced were numerous.

In Henir, Glaive had trained Subtract by putting him into each and every region's secret dungeons without any weapons. The young child could only rely on his early prototypes of Operators to survive. Subtract had tasted the pain of immortality, of dying repeatedly at the hands of Demons and monsters. Death by being blasted to smithereens, torn limb from limb, pierced by spears, burnt to a crisp, combusting to nothingness, dying by poisonous spores, electrified, impalement, engulfed in elements, and loss of blood. Every time he died were times he heard hysterical laughter mocking him into merciless darkness.

That was the only way Subtract learned to fight.

Of course, this was something he'd never tell anyone. That horrible experience was at least something he'd keep to himself. Subtract may be reckless, but dying was not an option for him to take. _Because…whether it was an instant, or a moment…it hurt, it fucking hurt._

Sighing to himself, he tried to forget for now. Focusing on the past would do him no favours here. In order to keep moving on, even without purpose, the only way to survive was to keep on going forward. Even if his own past was never far behind.

"Subtract?" Apple was looking at him with a puzzled look. "What's wrong? Your face looks a bit pained."

"Nothing much," he replied as if tired of it all. As if apathy ever scared away the pain, it had only made it appear more monstrous than the last. A hungry beast that manifested itself as a cluster of past was not just something one could escape from. It was the harsh reality, in which the present builds their actions upon. It always lurked in the corners of Subtract's eyes, solidified and waiting to jump. "Just thinking."

"Huh…well, we've arrived, I think."

In front of them was a white building with numerous crystal clear windows. Atop the door was a red cross, standing out.

"Geh, so obvious."

* * *

The hospital was filled with the smell of antiseptic and medicine, unnerving Subtract. He didn't like the smell since it reminded him too much of the laboratory he used to live in. The small windows of each door showcased patients in suffering from wounds. From several opened doors, moaning and groaning could be heard, but at least, it was nothing compared to the continuous screams Subtract was used to.

Trying to ignore them, he quickened his pace behind the two who were discussing about the prince. His room was close in the room 120, which they arrived in shortly. The prince was already awake, slightly embarrassed as he was talking to both Rena and Ara. Add and Eve were bickering in the corner. Subtract could easily spot the slight blushes the two held and felt satisfied._ So I was right._ They had all gathered around the prince when he said he would speak with all of them.

"My name is Chung Seiker, heir to the Seiker line of the guardians that protect Hamel. Please allow me to join you all so that I can grow stronger enough to bring my father back to normal! And if you would be so kind, help me protect Hamel as well from the Demon Invasion. We, the Seiker Family, will forever be in your debt."

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please follow/favourite/review/share~! **

**Man, I got to get used to writing longer chapters...who knows, the word count might increase a couple thousand more depending on how much time I have (and I don't have a lot XD).**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**Simon Hinori: Ikr and yeeeeeeeeeeeep :D**

**ScorchedEarth82800: Yeeeep and there's more of those moments there :D**

**Nagiiisa-san: Yes, yes, indeed XD**

**JustMe: THE SHIP SAILS OAO**


	39. The Shadows Move

Subtract was quite surprised, but he had already been told. A girlish looking boy who was the Prince of a well-known family. He could see why the others thought he was a girl and he was starting to think he was pulling off a trick. Why, he wondered, did the Prince have such long hair? The conversation was rather stalling after the short speech he had so…

"Why have you let your hair grow that long?" he questioned.

"My father said that it's a sign of how many battles I've been through and won," he answered, smiling. "Until I faced my father, of course."

"Hmm…so what happens if you lose one?"

"If I lose one…then it's simple. Rena, that knife on your hip…can I borrow it?"

Rena's eyes widened, "Wha…wait, you're not going to use it to do something dangerous…?"

"No, no, of course not. I did say I wanted to join you to bring my dad back to normal."

"O-oh, okay. Here." Rena offered Chung her blade.

He gave the blade a look before grabbing his own hair. With a swift movement, he cut off a chunk of his hair with determined eyes.

"C-Chung?" Aisha was definitely surprised, along with Rena. It made sense to the rest. It really was that simple. His long hair signified how strong he was, but with his losing to his own father, he lost the right to call himself strong. He cleaned his own slate to start anew. _Heh, how idealistic._

"I pledge to get stronger as the Prince Chung Seiker," he muttered under his breath, an oath to no one. "Now, what to do with this hair?"

Rena only smiled gently and rummaged around the drawers for a pair of scissors. Knowing what she was planning, Aisha helped threw the cut off hair into the bin.

"Chung, I'll help trim your hair for you," offered Rena. "Don't worry, I used to do this a lot for the elves back home."

"Oh, you're an elf?!" said Chung. "That's amazing, Rena!"

"No need to be so polite," she laughed.

"Really, it's awesome," commented Chung.

Rena just smiled and asked Chung what sort of hair style he desired. It was a strangely warm atmosphere to Subtract. The sun was showering through the window, splashing across the room in orange, white light. The white walls no longer looked so cold, but rather the blue light of the sky seemed to dim the shadows in blue. It was peaceful. For once, everything was just so peaceful and perfect.

Subtract gazed on in a daze, mesmerised by the atmosphere. For a moment, he smiled. For once, he smiled. Not for the thrill of the fight, or his constant and echoing instability, but a normal smile. Apple was surprised to see this, but it was truly a happy sight for her. Apple knew Subtract has went through so much that he had forgotten how to smile like this. _Making him join the Elgang was a good choice_¸ thought Apple.

The shadows didn't seem so menacing anymore. They danced around the Elgang, highlighting the dust particles in the room as if in a theatre. Nothing else mattered. He didn't know warmth like this. The coldness of Henir had just begun to seep away little by little. Nothing else truly mattered but this. If he stayed here with the Elgang, maybe just maybe…he'd gain something a little closer to salvation.

The numerous times spent with the Elgang: the times around the fire that crackled and whooshed, the times fighting alongside with each other, the time in the inns with the homey atmosphere, and none of it would be forgotten.

Time seemed to slow down immensely. A black shadow in the corner emerged with yellow eyes. It stared coldly at Subtract with a slumped over pose. Subtract stared back, eyes widening at the realisation. No, he had seen shadows like that before. Back in Henir, when time would still itself and death would take its place. Shadows that stare quietly.

"Your parents are dead and I laugh," said Rena. With a shocked expression, Subtract looked at Rena who was still talking with Chung. _That's weird, I'm sure I heard her…_

"Your family is dead and I laugh," said Chung. This time, Subtract saw. He saw Chung's mouth move to form the words Subtract heard, but his expression didn't change. Frantically looking around the room, everyone was still normal.

"Your childhood is dead and I'm still laughing," said Aisha, laughing a few times at what Rena said. _Wha…_

"Your innocence is dead and I'm still laughing," inputted Eve with a stoic expression.

"What can I do? You keep on dying and yet I laugh," scoffed Add.

"But…" Subtract fearfully turned his head to Apple who looked at him, "Your guilt isn't dead and I can't stop laughing!"

Her laughter rang out through the room, shuddering loudly into the corners of Subtract's mind. He couldn't believe it. _What is everyone saying? Why…why?!_

"Mary and Tom went to the other side," sighed Rena.

"To the butcher where black cats hide," pointed out Chung, looking upwards at his fringes.

"Hand in hand to the butcher's fore," laughed Aisha, pointing to a mistake Rena made.

"Where the hind holds all the gore," apologised Rena, panicking. Her hands firmly held onto the scissors as she carefully snipped.

"Mary and Tom skips through a weave," said Apple with a concerned expression. The black shadow in the corner stared onwards, watching the scene unfold with a comical gaze.

"Stop it," muttered Subtract.

"A butcher's welcome, they never leave," questioned Apple, stepping closer.

He felt sick to the stomach. Nausea crept up his stomach and his throat with a rising hysteria picking up on its way. His mouth felt dry, but that all the more supported the sickly feeling he felt. The Elgang had just began to repeat their song, each taking turns with random selection. All Subtract knew was that he wouldn't be able to stay standing for long if this kept going on. Even the shadow itself had started to split itself among the walls, staring down at him.

"Shut up! Why are you singing that song over and over…how the fuck do you know…!" yelled Subtract, covering his own ears. He fell to his knees, unable to keep his posture. Closing his eyes, he felt like the whole world's balance went wrong.

"Subtract…what's wrong?" asked Apple. Her face worried without a doubt. Subtract had been acting weird for the couple past minutes. He was smiling just normally before, but soon his expression changed drastically to a panicked expression. Even when he looked at Apple, his face was filled with fear. Sparing a few glances to the corner, she had noticed that Subtract frequently looked there as if something was standing there. There was, of course, nothing standing there.

"Subtract?" she repeated.

With a gasp, he opened his eyes and looked around the room. Everyone was staring down at him with concerned looks, but that wasn't how it looked like to Subtract. He was sure he was just hallucinating further, but…all of them were smiling at him. The shadow in the corner didn't disappear, but he could still hear Apple's words. Even when her face was a twisted smile, he could hear her concern for him.

Wobbling, he stood up with the wall for support. _I have to get out of here._

"Nothing…" he muttered and quickly left through the door.

"What the hell was he talking about?" questioned Aisha, frowning. "He seemed really unstable."

Add's eyes silently followed Subtract's movement out and he followed him through the door with an urgent pace.

* * *

Subtract walked at a fast pace through the corridor, ignoring the doors on either side. He still felt sick to the stomach and it wasn't going away any time soon. Faint cackling noises could be heard from each room. _Get your head together._ Of course, to Add, there were no cackling noises to be heard.

How long has it been since he had long suppressed those hallucinations? Every time Subtract had died in those Secret Dungeons, he'd hear the mocking laughter following his eventual death. Glaive had the power to keep reviving Subtract and he did so mercilessly. Subtract had known since long ago that there was no afterlife since then. Nothing awaited him in the darkness other than that shadowy him, it was his own demented escape from dying. His own fucked up brain created an escape place that only served to plunge him down further.

He was always reminded, no matter what, of the two he couldn't save back then. Back when he was in that torture camp, he was taken cared of by two slaves. The upholder of his cage had continuously had Subtract perform painful exercises that only made him bleed further from his shackles. It was a wonder how he didn't die before the final stretch of torture.

Mary and Tom were formerly named Slaves 21 and 22, siblings who were abandoned to the Slave Trader Camp. Orphans who knew pain even before they started walking, but knew kindness before they knew cruelty. Adept at lying and tricking the Slave Traders, they treated every slaves they were entrusted to with care, and cruelty when it was necessary. Subtract was the last one they would be taking care of before they were finally killed by their own kindness.

Kindness is weakness, was Subtract's own belief. It never gave you anything, it never started you anywhere and it always let you down. _It only made things worse._ Maybe, for Subtract, it would've been better for Subtract to have never met those two. If he hadn't…if he hadn't…_ Maybe nothing would be that different to begin with._

"Oi, where are you going?" questioned Add.

"None of your business," responded Subtract. "Or does taking a walk around Hamel require permission, my Majesty?"

"Keh, getting sarcastic on me, huh?"

"What do you even want?"

"To get you to fucking rest. You look pale as hell."

"I already did, in case you don't know, from operating on my arm again."

"It seems like you haven't rested enough!"

"Sure I did, or do you want to record my sleeping as well?"

Subtract was getting more and more irritated, his mind cramping up on the laughter piling up around him. He honestly didn't feel well, but if everyone would just leave him alone…

"Stop it with your fake act, Add. Caring for your sibling? Don't make me laugh."

"Don't make me laugh." Echoed back the laughter. "Caring for your sibling?"

Shut up, shut up, shut up.

Getting rather fed up, Add quickened his pace and grabbed Subtract's shoulder. With a forceful pull, he turned Subtract around just to see his eyes. His right eye was slightly shaking with panic, sadness and annoyance. It was almost heart breaking to see just how far down Subtract was. Subtract was panicking right now, right in front of someone else. He felt like he couldn't breathe in the hospital, a mounting feeling of insanity seemed to pick up the pace.

Gritting his teeth, he muttered, "So what."

Subtract smacked off Add's hand and hurriedly walked away, leaving Add alone in the corridor.

* * *

The outside air expanded vast and fast, opening up a surrounding of white and blue. It really was a grand place to be with all the gold lines lining from here to there, and there to here. Luckily, it was easier to catch a break in a place like this.

"The fuck is going on," muttered Subtract. He was losing it. The nameless figure appeared in front of him without any hinting of trouble doing so. It was just there, taunting him and ready to set him off as soon as he got the chance. He looked around to see if he was being watched, but no one and nothing stopped to stare at the lone teenager in front of the hospital. Faintly, he could still hear the song haunting him. _I can't be here._

* * *

He ran, ran as fast as he could. The voices wouldn't stop echoing in his head. It had been a long time since he felt like this, a rising hysteria threatening to boil over. He had to leave the area or he wouldn't be able to hold it in. Cackling noises ran alongside him, mixing in with the singing.

Not seeing where he was going, he was out of the city grounds. Numerous monsters saw him run, but he was running too fast to catch any of their attention completely. The singing was just starting to fade, seeping into the environment around him. He had stopped running then, but remained panicked. He collapsed onto his knees to catch his breath. The Operators just arrived behind him, whirring worriedly around their master.

"Oh? You are…"

Subtract looked up and saw a woman standing in front of him. She wore a priestess' clothes with her blue hood and white dress. With a stoic expression, her blue eyes followed his movements. He knew her. From one of those Secret Dungeons, she was there to heal him every time he received injuries. A priestess that smiled faintly as she watched him silently through his suffering. It wasn't as if she intended to enjoy his suffering, but more like she couldn't do anything else. The priestess would watch on with a sad gaze and even as she stood there, she looked at him with sorrowful eyes.

She walked over to him and offered her hand, "Running from something?"

_What is she doing here?_ He was suspicious. Staring at her hand, he cautiously took her hand to stand up.

She sighed, gazing behind him. Frowning, he stared back in her direction to see Add running towards him.

"Unfortunately, running won't do you any good."

"Huh…?" Quickly turning back, the Priestess wasn't there. Just another hallucination. "I really…need to get it together."

"Jeez, making me waste my time running after you, why don't you," grumbled Add.

"Hmph, that's your fault, I believe," said Subtract. Subtract's own voice sounded off and that was easy to notice.

"Just what went on in that room back there?" asked Add.

"I…don't know…"

"Well, come on back anyway."

"…"

"Or are you too scared to face Apple?"

"Like I said that."

"You could just explain to her that you hallucinated, or something."

"…"

"Or you did." Add sighed to himself and took a couple steps closer. "You said you wanted to go back in time, right? Who do you want to save? It's been nagging me for a while."

"Why would I need to tell you just because it's been nagging you?"

"If we're both aiming for the same thing, might as well, right?"

Subtract clicked his fingers and sat on his Operators, staring at Add who did the same. The monsters were still too far to notice the two hanging under a marble shelter. Pillars surrounded them, casting long shadows across the floor. Sounds of water splashing could be heard nearby.

"Back at the Slave Trader Camp…when I was recaptured, they struck metal poles into my wrists into the back of my ankle. Back then, I was being taken care of by two slaves with the name 21 and 22."

Add stayed silent and made a sign for Subtract to continue.

"The Trader in charge of my capture kept making me doing exercises with the metallic implants on. Day after day, just to remind me that I'm going to be punished further for trying to escape. It was only those two that treated me with kindness. They said that they've been living in the camp for quite some time and took care of any slaves they were entrusted to. In exchange for their kindness, I gave them the names: Mary and Tom. …Names that were from the only nursery rhyme I knew. They were really happy to be given names and took care of me as much as possible.

"But when it was my time to be tortured…they started stealing more food for me. I told them that I didn't need that much, but they were persistent. Three days into the torture…" Subtract shuddered. Memories flashing into his head.

"You don't have to continue if you don't need to." Add understood that prying further was in bad taste.

"No, I'll continue. Three days into my torture, they were unfortunately found out by the Slave Traders. A-as punishment…for not selling them out, they…"

* * *

"Do you know what happens to bad kids like you?" grunted the torturer. Two men had grabbed Mary and Tom by their hairs, hanging them up with wide smiles on their faces. "We punish the bad kids along with their accomplices. Do you understand what this means? No? You will soon."

The torturer grabbed a tool and placed it on the torture table in front of Subtract. Shivering in the coldness of the room, he shakingly looked at the tool in front of him.

"Let's play a game, brat. Under two minutes, you must get rid of all your finger nails using this vice. If you don't do it in time, your accomplices will be dead by that time. That's right, it's a race against time, do you understand this?"

"W-why…" stuttered Subtract.

"Huh? You're asking me why? I believe I already told you…this is punishment. Now, we'll begin the timer."

"Wait! Isn't there…"

The torturer pressed start on his timer and nodded to the other two. They started laughing as they threw the two onto the ground, quickly suppressing them. One of them broke Mary's fingers one by one, one of them stomped harshly onto Tom's chest. Panicking, Subtract turned to the vice and placed his finger into one of the socket.

Gritting his teeth, he raised his hand in a fist and…

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~! If ya like this chapter so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Replying to the reviews:**

**Yeelismo: Yas, bro.**

**TheSeiker: Thank ya so much, m8~ I officially welcome Chung to the Elgang~!**

**Simon Hinori: Ikr, I actually have three SACs so it's all hell broken loose.**

**Yeelismo: Haha, yeah.**


	40. Two Are Missing

**Heyooo~! How's it been? I've been crappily drawing Subtract the past few days (laughssadly) and you can check 'em on my tumblr XD (yes I have tumblr). If ya don't mind, **** have fun poking at my crappy arts (the ones that are black and white hahahaha...BECAUSECOLOURINGISFRIGGIN-)**

**Btw, it's desolatedchronos**

* * *

"You tried to rip each and every one of your nails off, huh…" started Add. "You said you tried, but…?"

"I…didn't make it in time…"

* * *

By then, eight nails had been ripped with the bloodcurdling scream riveting on. The two had already left, hands stained and voices ricohetting with laughter.

"Time's up…it's over," said the torturer. He edged closer to Subtract staring at the two corpses before him, face close with a diabolic grin. His eyes slit like knives with pure black eyes staring down, reflecting the small stature of Subtract shivering alone. With a laughter filled with rancour, he left the room and shut the cage door closed.

All the pain didn't matter, all the screaming, all the failure, all the succession…all the shivering and crying didn't matter at all. Subtract dropped to his knees in front of Mary and Tom who were unrecognisable, but he could still tell. He could still tell who they were. They cared for him, they took care of him, they fed him, they patched him up, they chatted with him and kept him company. Yet…this was how he repaid them.

By the first nail, he had already hesitated in doing the second. The pain was too immense to handle and he found himself falling to the ground, gripping onto his finger with screaming echoing in his ears. It was only when he heard Mary calling for him did he stand up again and repeat with his second finger. He failed to completely rip off his second nail and only partially ripped it. Screaming even louder, his adrenaline set off and he ripped off his nails in successive succession.

Even so, even after trying so hard, even after ignoring the pain, the blood, the nails flowing down—none of that worked. Mary and Tom still ended up dead under two minutes, which was a direct lie of the torturer. Subtract thought that he had time—how dare he thought of that. One minute could've saved them, but he relied on the length of two minutes. It really was his fault. He should've tried to stop them from stealing food, he should've resisted coldly and brutally, cynically and thanklessly.

But, he didn't. He killed them, not with his own two hands, but it was his fault all the same.

With both knees touching the unforgivingly cold floor, he stared down at the harsh reality lying down before him. Something snapped in him and shattered on the floor he sat upon. It came out first as a whimper, to sobbing, then lastly…laughter. He laughed. The broken mind of a child split into two and he laughed with his head back, hands cuddling the blood of his friends. He broke mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

* * *

Raising his head to the ceiling, he felt like laughing at his idiotic attempts of trying to save those closest to him. To him, they were the parents who cared for him. They understood his pain more than anyone else ever did and treated him appropriately.

"They died under two minutes," he said. "Within those two minutes was the hardest I've ever tried to save something and it failed miserably. Ha ha ha…"

Add remained silent, taking in the information recently conveyed. _So that's what happened._

Subtract used to think how monstrous humans can be, experimenting on their own kind without any remorse. From that failure, he realised that it was the other way around. Humans were inevitably weak and callous, ignoring their own wounds and others at the cost of their humane status. Those experimenters and slave traders…were they really human? If he thought about it closely, the state of being humane is being kind to both humans and animals.

If a human being was strictly inhumane due to their own nature, didn't that basically strip them of the rights to be called humans? When you became something of a higher-up, you lose the right to call yourself a human being. In that case, the only definition of human beings are definitely weak and helpless to save themselves, or others. It was because Subtract was weak, that he couldn't save them two.

If only he was stronger, like he was now, he could save them and that was exactly what he was planning to do.

"Heh, now that I think about it. How humane am I now?" he muttered quietly, quiet enough for Add to not hear. _How long ago since I lost such a thing as humanity?_ He could kill now without remorse just like those traders did. It was despicable to think like he was similar to them, but it was true. A killer who shows the same achievements were no different from each other. Thinking of this pissed him off to no end.

"Well, heh, you went through the torture long than I did," said Add. He stood up from his Dynamos who flew behind him. "And all I can say to that is…"

Subtract sighed and stood up, "Your apology will do nothing for me. It's empty, like your fear."

Each words were spat out like a venom, but for some reason, he didn't feel the anger like he used to. Whatever happened to him, he wanted to blame it on someone for some reason. It was definitely someone's fault that he had gotten this soft in such a short amount of time.

"I'm definitely going back. I'm not weak as I was before," declared Subtract. He smiled widely. "And oh yes, there will be blood."

"Then, it's decided."

Subtract cocked an eyebrow.

"When I did a diagnostic on you…" started Add.

"Without my permission, huh?"

"You were radiating space and time energy continuously. Care to explain about that?"

Subtract sighed, "Mother was…"

Add's breath slightly hitched.

"Mother's home had always felt like its time went slow," he finished. "Although, a human's time perception would normally interpret time as slow due to its parietal lobe, but that wasn't the case."

Add remembered those times of peace back home. Back when he wasn't an experiment, back when everything moved slow, back when his mother was still alive. It would've been just perfect if they hadn't come to fetch him.

"When I was born, I wasn't alive."

"Then, how the fuck are you here?"

"Let me explain, you idiot. There was a time distortion in the house's vicinity and just in the perfect place, too. When I was born stillborn in the house, the time distortion resonated with my empty husk of a body and managed to resurrect me. Heh, she always used to say what a miracle it was."

_Wait, if he was resurrected by that…that means his whole soul is composed of…_

"Spatial and time fragments." Almost as if he read Add's mind, but it wasn't hard to guess. "You've figured it out. This body really is void of a human soul."

Subtract smiled ironically, pointing to his own heart.

"And all there is in here is something not living."

* * *

Apple was worried. She was worried for Subtract and her constant worrying wasn't helping her. Subtract was definitely acting weird and she didn't know what it was.

"I'm sure Add went to get Subtract back," reassured Rena. "But I understand your concerns. I've never seen Subtract like that."

"Seen Subtract like what?" Elesis came through the door, bringing along Elsword and Raven. They were chattering amongst themselves, talking excitedly about the recruits they trained.

"Subtract, he…I'm sure he was hallucinating," answered Apple, looking downwards at the floor. It was hugely distressing to see Subtract like that, but she tried to keep it together.

"Hallucinating? Is he fine?" asked Elesis.

Elsword and Raven stopped talking, having heard the news.

"I don't think he would be fine mentally," said Raven. "But if you said Add's gone to get him…"

"Wait, don't he and Subtract not get along well?" questioned Elsword.

"Elbaka, you do know they came here to Hamel in one piece, right? I'm sure they've sort out their…problems," said Aisha. "Anyways, you're all dirty. You should go take a shower!"

"Since when were you a clean freak?"

"I'm not one, Elbaka!"

"Sure." Elsword slurred out his word teasingly. Aisha looked like she was close to boiling point before Elesis interrupted, clearing her throat.

"When do you think they'll be back?"

"I'm pretty sure they'll be back soon, I hope. Subtract just ran out of the room looking sick…" replied Rena. Apple's face darkened out of worry as she stared at the door.

* * *

Subtract and Add were making their way back as the sun passed by, staring down harshly with its glare. Clouds passed by solemnly as if they knew what was going on. Safely making it back into the city, people sifted through each other busily with no eye contact happening anywhere. It was the perfect place to speak without a concern of anyone listening in.

"How the hell would you find out all that anyway?" questioned Add.

"By experimenting on my brain, it was hard work," replied Subtract. "The brain at birth creates neurons and goes through processes like synaptogenesis and myelination. They create memories mostly in the motor cortexes before moving onto association areas. When I tried searching into that process by rewinding time through a copy scan, I found that there were no activity whatsoever. My brain wasn't making any connections with their neuron counterparts. After a few seconds, activity began to start up in the hindbrain before it quickly made its way to the forebrain. It didn't resemble normal synaptogenesis and myelination. It was just…a crystallization of time and space fragments, putting together dead genes and fixing up a process similar to brain growth.

"I guess that makes me somewhat of zombie, or just a dead thing that came back to life through a complicated process. When I did a body scan, the time and space fragments were completely embedded and fixed up what was called a normal, human growth. Strange, isn't it? Something like that shouldn't work but it did."

Looking at Subtract was almost surreal, that he used to be a stillborn. A stillborn that came back to life because of a distortion in time and space. How many babies have came out like this? How rare could it be? Had it ever happen before? All these scientifically curious questions came bubbling up in Add's head. He couldn't help it. A scientist was meant to be curious, wanting to find out the unknown through their observations. Experimenting on Subtract didn't seem so far from the mind and that was a terrifying aspect.

"Back in that place, I tried finding out more about how I grew up with that process. How my brain could handle such a distortion…" mused Subtract. "But it's hard to regain information when your brain goes through a process such as synaptic pruning. It gets rid of information it thinks the brain doesn't need. So I tried getting rid of that process and substituting it to selective synaptic pruning."

Add narrowed his eyes, "Just how much self-experimentation did you do? You probably could've died in any of them."

"Hmph, as a scientist, isn't it necessary to go through as many risks?" inquired Subtract. "They all turned out successful in the ending so I didn't turn up brain dead."

Add remained silent, knowing what Subtract said was true. It wasn't as if he wasn't familiar to self-experimentation. To get the Dynamos working, he had to do something similar. The human brain was filled with electrical signals that got passed throughout the whole nervous system. Neurons that passed through the spines to the motor parts of the body and the sensory neurons that get sent back into the brain. A process requiring the brain.

"I guess asking for you to share a bit of information is too much to ask?" asked Add.

"In your dreams," scoffed Subtract. "There's the hospital."

Lo and behold, the white building stood out in the courtyard with its wide area. They headed inside the antiseptic-smelling building, welcomed by the clean environment that laid inside. Subtract still didn't feel quite well in the hospital with the windows peering into the rooms. People suffered in these rooms as they tried to heal. Never did the moanings and groanings stop, day or night, people suffered from their wounds. There were the soldiers who suffered from their own protector's attacks. It was a sad sight for sure.

Subtract found it an ironic tragedy where these people believed in their "Helputt" for so long, only for him to turn against his people. What made him turn was something they might never know. Helputt was a proud figure of Hamel who, along with his family, protected Hamel for decades almost without end. Yet, he defected to the demon's side with that highly corruptible armour. Now that he came to think about it, if the entirety of Hamel was being protected by warriors whose armours made them susceptible to Dark El, wouldn't they be completely defenceless? Then, he remembered the Red Knights who took over the protection in their useless place.

When they arrived in Chung's room, Captain Penensio was there with yet another grave expression on his face. _More like Captain Grave-face._

"I see that all of the Elgang has arrived," he said with a faint smile on his face. "Everyone, this won't take long."

Closing the door, Subtract saw Apple looking almost vibrantly happy to see Subtract back. Avoiding her eyes, he slowly walked over to her without a word.

"I have decided to split the Red Knights in two squads. One will go back to Velder for reinforcement and one will stay here to drive the Demons back from Resiam," said Captain _Grave-face._

Elesis assumed a thinking position before saying, "I think that's a good idea. Alright, send the first squad!"

"And she's more decisive than her idiotic brother as always," sighed Eve.

"I just hope they won't notice the knight's vulnerability in Hamel," said Rena.

"And that's why we're here, Rena," pointed out Elesis. "It doesn't matter if they find out, we'll neutralise them successfully."

Almost tear-faced, but proud _Grave-face_, "Oh, Red haired Captain, we'll follow your orders!"

"And yet another idiot," facepalmed Eve.

"We'll need to drive Demons out of Resiam as much as we can. I predict that area is a prime area for Demons," said the Captain. "Be careful, though, there's been signs of water flooding nearby. We suspect it's the Demons' doing."

"Sounds like a plan," said Elsword with his chest huffed high.

"Too bad it's not yours, leader," pointed out Aisha, emphasising Leader. Elsword blushed out of embarrassment and remained silent.

"Whether you want to do it today, or tomorrow, it must be as soon as possible," said the Captain. He left the room, saying he was going to prepare the red knights.

"We still got seven hours of daylight to burn, might as well, right?" said Elesis. "When they've prepared, we'll go."

"Yet another decision made not from the leader," muttered Aisha. Elsword's blush got heavier.

"Subtract," whispered Apple, tugging softly on Subtract's sleeve. He turned his head to face her. "You alright now?"

"I am," he replied shortly. "I'm alright so…don't put on that face."

He quickly looked away as soon as he muttered. Apple's eyes widened for a couple seconds before she giggled.

"What are you two lovebirds talking about over there?" teased Elesis.

"Nothing, and we're not lovebirds," stated Subtract firmly.

"Ah, no delicacy," commented Aisha. "You guys shouldn't hold up on the romance."

"I said, we're not lovebirds," repeated Subtract.

"You're going to hurt Apple's feelings," pointed out Eve. Subtract glanced at Apple who was, actually, looking a bit down before she noticed Subtract's stare on her.

"A-ah, nothing! Um, Subtract's right so…" she said, trailing off. Subtract just frowned.

"Ah~look what you've done," tutted Elesis.

_This group is always so nonsensical_. He had always thought that and it had never been so more true than now. Subtract could feel Apple's tug on his sleeve tighten ever so slightly, making him confused. A certain swirling feeling entailed in his own robotic heart, but he tried not to mind it one bit. There was always this confused feeling around Apple and it wasn't something he exactly detested. It just…didn't make sense.

"I'll just go back to the inn," he said. Apple followed him out of the room after waving at everyone.

* * *

The walk on the way back was silent, aside from the chatter of people around them. Subtract's Operators buzzed slightly as they surrounded both Subtract and Apple. It was as if they were acting the same as the Elgang, which Subtract seemed to notice. _I'll recalibrate them when I get back._ It was a peaceful walk, nonetheless, and Subtract somewhat enjoyed it. Apple wasn't asking the prying questions like Add was, which to be honest he didn't mind answering.

The inn was a grand building the same as the hospital, wide and tall. It made Subtract wonder who build Hamel in the first place and how rich they were. _It must be the Seiker family._

Subtract ordered one of his Operators to go on ahead, to find his room and to open it for them. There was almost no one inside the inn, which Subtract found odd. There weren't many tourists in the city, but it must've been because of the Demon invasion. The waters around the place were slightly blackened from corruption.

Subtract's room was the same as it was, without a table or much furniture but the bed. That was alright, he could certainly make his own with the technology he had stored. Apple went to sit on the bed, watching Subtract set up his small laboratory. She always seemed to enjoy watching him working on his technology, which was a nice addition. Back in Henir, it was just young him alone with Glaive watching from time to time. The silent tick of the space would haunt Subtract ever so much, but here… there was none of that. Time may still be ticking silently for him and within him, but it was peaceful. The kind of peace Subtract desired all along. Except, it wasn't quite enough. There was just two people missing. Two were missing and he needed them back.

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~! If ya like this fanfiction so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**And thank you to Scientist Zimmena for adding this fanfiction to his/her favourites/follows~!**

**Replying to the reviews: **

**Simon Hinori: yah bro, school lyf is shit bro.**

**Yeelismo: Yes, ma'am.**


	41. Notice: I survive

Hello, Half-Assed Reality readers. I'm sorry for not posting any chapters for so long, but in the next few months, I will be focusing solely on this fanfiction (as well as Tumblr fics, godsaveme). I'm working on the next chapter already after taking an unannounced hiatus for two weeks (school holidays).

And to any, and if any at all, migrated from She is, Forsaken to this fan fiction, hello to you, too!


	42. Past Guilt Revealed (REEDITED)

**Yo, sorry for not updating for a while. Unannounced hiatus just came through and also I'm very busy with school. This chapter is a little shorter, but I hope ya don't mind! School, really, has been assaulting my ass with painful tests and homework - Hope ya understand...but without further adodo...here's the chapter!**

* * *

Apple was getting slightly worried. Dusk was setting in on the horizons and Subtract had been continuously working without rest. He had long declined the offer to come with the Elgang, saying he was too busy to go. They weren't fine with it at first, but Subtract had them go with, "I'll join you guys in the next dungeon, alright? I promise."

It was surprising that Subtract was willingly being polite just in order for some time for research. Being the worrywart she was, Apple also stayed back with Subtract to watch him work. She never grabbed the concept of boredom, so she was satisfied enough to sit there and watch.

But it was strange. She felt like the air in the room was off somehow.

"Are you in Time Mode right now?" she asked quietly, the whirring of the machines nearly blocking her voice out.

"I am," he responded shortly. Apple stood up from the bed and made her way over to him, looking at what Subtract was working on. There was a hologram, a disk shaped object for which Subtract was attaching parts to. She had no idea what it was, but she knew it had something to do with him using Time Mode.

"What are you trying to do?"

"Nothing you should worry yourself with."

"Can I help you with it?"

"How would you help?" He put down his screwdriver and turned around in his seat, staring at Apple and waiting for her to answer.

She smiled faintly and pointed at her core on her forehead, "I share several copies of the Queen's information that resides in her core. Some of them may have to do with time and space."

"You'd be willing to share those information? The Queen herself never reveals that information with Add," he said, almost jokingly.

"Well, that's for the reason that mother doesn't trust Add enough."

"I can see that, and you trust me?"

"I can trust you with some information."

Subtract stayed quiet for a few moments, as if processing.

"Why are you trusting me?"

Apple sat done on her drones and opened her mouth, just to close it quickly. She seemed nervous from the way she was fiddling with her hands and to be honest, she was more than just nervous.

"I…I've been meaning to tell you something, but I had been too scared to tell you. I don't know if you'd forgive me, or just be fine with it. It's not something…pleasant I must say and I understand if you…"

"Hold on, you're going ahead without talking about anything."

Apple bit her lips and stared straight at Subtract.

"Back in the War, did you receive an unknown signal sent to your arm?"

Subtract's eyes widened at the question. Of course, he would know. He remembered what happened back then without forgetting a single thing. The torturous experiments, the pain, the fear, the loneliness and the Doctor himself. All of them came quivering close together like a young child encased in all negativity.

"What about it?"

"During the war, the Nasod Kingdom was trying to find out all about the Nasods humans were creating themselves. Of course, that included the Nasod-Human Experiments which you were involved in. The Nasod King sent out a signal towards all Nasods in order to make them join the war, but…he lost contact with you when you ended up somewhere off the dimension plane."

"Heh, so if I didn't go batshit insane, I would've joined the war anyway…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing, nothing. So, is that how you know about me?"

"Yes, I read the files when the Nasod King was destroyed. When I woke up, I immediately searched up on all the information left by my race to see if any of them were left."

"So you stumbled on my information accidently." Subtract had a hard time believing that because Nasod data should have been heavily categorised. No matter, even Nasods like Apple must have had curiousity implemented into their codes._ That's fine, it makes Nasods more interesting anyway._

"I didn't. I also searched the Nasod-Human subjects to see if there were still any alive for taking in. I could teach them ways to survive better if they were any left…"

"Quite the princess indeed. Alright, so is that why you trust me? Because you feel guilty for having seen some of my past?"

Apple looked down and nodded in acknowledgement.

"That is not trust, just plain guilt." Maybe that was a bit too harsh.

"Right." She responded just as shortly, taking it well on her surface. She was a princess, she couldn't afford weakness in front of someone else. Especially to someone who was part-Nasod.

"We had technology to share information between Nasods, but they are long lost. I could give you the blueprints to build them, but gathering the parts would be…" Apple explained.

"A little difficult especially when Nasods do not roam in Hamel."

"Maybe so, but I've given a look at the map of Hamel's dungeons. Some places look like it's flooded with technology. I could do a Colossal Net to detect any necessary technological parts."

Subtract raised an eyebrow in peaked curiousity. Apple just smiled.

"I'm the Princess of the Nasods. I can do more than just attack."

"Then, go ahead, Princess of the Nasods. Your victim awaits."

* * *

A short flash ran through the city of Hamel, expanding beyond the borders and cascaded through the dungeons instantly. Every surfaces, every buildings, every structures, every bodies of water and even within were searched. Beyond and far were searched in forests and inner structures of waterways. Even caves were searched to the extent of temples and halls. Demons could feel the surge plunge through them, ignoring their vile existence and focusing on what lied within.

Eve frowned at the presence of the Net, looking back as the Elgang fought on.

"Apple? She did a Colossal Net?" she said to herself.

"Right in the middle of a battle," commented Add snarkily. "Great timing."

Eve sent a small glare to Add before sighing, "She's searching for technology in Hamel. I don't know why she would do that, but I guess I can ask when we all get back."

The flash ran on back, returning to the source of it all. To the place of the source that Demons hungered to overtake. Apple stood atop a tall building, waiting for the flash to return back to her so she could collect the information. Subtract stood back and watched with interest, feeling the flash return rather quickly.

"Alright, I'll need a map," she commanded. They returned back to the inn where they prepared a map on the table Subtract had pulled up.

"There are Ancient Golem Sentinels and Ancient Nasods Guards in the Ancient Waterway. We can gather some cores from them and use their parts to create what's on the blueprint. It's not a complicated machinery, as such, so we only need them."

"They're past Resiam, so I guess it wouldn't hurt to call on the Elgang for help."

"That's obvious, Subtract. We're a part of them."

"Right."

"Subtract."

"Alright, alright."

"I'll do the construction and you support. We'll need around ten of their cores and several spare parts. This shouldn't be too hard."

* * *

"Damn, those demons are way stronger than they were in Velder. They look really different, too," complained Elsword. "And these gems we carried back. You sure they'll be useful, Chung?"

"I wouldn't say useful, but these gems are strange. I think it would be worth giving them a look," answered Chung. "Penensio, we're back!"

The Captain—Captain _Grave-face_ welcomed the Elgang back, giving a look at the gems.

"Those gems…they seem similar to the guardian stones the Seiker family uses," he commented.

"I agree with you, Captain, they've been strikingly weird," said Chung, holding up the gem.

"Well, maybe we should melt them, or something?" suggested Elsword.

The Captain and Chung looked at Elsword in surprise as if he said something remarkable.

"What? If we want to find out the core, or something, we melt it, right?" he repeated differently.

"Right, right, we should get this to Horatio, Hamel's Blacksmith," said the Captain. The Elgang followed the Captain across the city, swirling through pathways and people passing by. As time continued on, less and less people were in the streets. It seemed that the Colossal Net had disturbed the peace.

"I'm worried, though, if this is a guardian stone…it won't be very easy to melt," commented Chung.

"I've heard that they were made with water el," said Elesis. "You sure this will work, Penensio?"

"Of course, Captain. If anyone knows strongly about the guardian stones, it is also Horatio and not just the Seiker family. No offense."

"None taken," said Chung.

* * *

They found Horatio striking his metal with an iron hammer, hammering away the bumps and inconsistencies on the blade. He was old with a wrinkled face and whitened hair nuzzling his head. His eyes closed, but slightly open to see what he was doing. Horatio's arms were well toned for the doing, his long days as smith showed well on his body.

He counted in one and twos, striking the metal in rhythm.

"Horatio!" called the Captain. Failing to grab the man's attention, he called out his name several times before Horatio stopped and looked visibly annoyed.

"What is it with you? Is that you, Penensio? You haven't paid me a visit in a long time, I thought you were dead!" chuckled Horatio. His annoyance suddenly disappeared from his face and his features softened, although not by very much. Horatio was slightly short-sighted but he could spot Penensio fairly well.

"We found a stone that's very similar to the Seiker's Guardian Stone, would you care to take a look at it for us?" asked the Captain.

"Always the polite man," nodded Horatio. "Sure, give it over here."

Horatio inspected the stone carefully, squinting closely to its dark surface. Muttering a few words to himself, he turned it over and over before raising his head.

"It is definitely similar to the Guardian Stone, but I'll need to melt it to know for sure," he said.

"Melting it would be no easy task," told Chung.

"No, it won't be, but with my trusty furnace and enough heat…your Stone will reveal itself. I'll need a strong heat source, though, and finding it will be hard I trust."

"Then, we best go back to the outskirts of resiam," said Eve, turning to Horatio. "I saw a demon with a strong heat energy output."

"Best get on it fast, then," stated Horatio. "Meanwhile, may you ask your other friends what they have done? I felt a pulse running through the streets. Heh, I may have dodgy eyesight, but my other senses they be fine."

"Yes," agreed Eve slowly. "I will find out in due time."

* * *

Subtract and Apple were preparing their equipment by then, hoping to set out as early as possible. The sun was still pulling down, but only a couple hours had passed since the Elgang returned. The map showed the pathway to the Ancient Waterway, which could be reached if they circled around Resiam. Apple's earlier detection saw water flooding the city itself so passing through it was an impossible task.

Eve knocked on their doors and entered, frowning at the display before her.

"Are you two going somewhere together?" she asked, her drones floating beside her.

"We are before the sun goes down completely," responded Subtract, much less paying attention to her. He was moreso focused on his Operators, handling them with utmost care with his tools. Closing them up, he clicked his fingers and they all rose up from the table in operative condition.

"Would you mind to join us? Everyone, I mean," asked Apple. Eve looked at her with a confused look.

"Where do you mean to go? Why did you release a Colossal Net?" she questioned, questions brimming from the last but she kept quiet of them.

Apple pursed her lips, deciding what to tell and what not to tell. If she told Eve the truth, that she planned on sharing some of her core information to Subtract, her Queen may not be glad.

"I…we plan to upgrade some of our technology," she lied. "We plan to go to the Ancient Waterway." It was a lame lie, but it was a half-truth all the same. Eve noticed the lie, but made no mind of it. Whatever her daughter chose, it was her choice and her choice alone. Eve was not a clingy Queen, nor was she constricting. _It's time the princess learns how to choose on her own_, thought Eve, _although she has learnt it well enough already. _

"That is fine, I will go with you and ask the others," she said before disappearing into the hallway.

"She noticed," said Subtract. "But she didn't object, huh. Fine Queen indeed."

Apple felt quite envious at the comment and smiled, "Not like you to compliment others."

"I believe I have that choice," he replied, noticing her expression. "Or would you prefer I compliment you instead?"

She had flushed then and turned away, staying silent. _I can't tell what he's thinking._

* * *

"Yeah, we still have some daylight to burn," agreed Elsword, sharpening his sword. "Did they say where they wanted to go and why?"

"To upgrade their technology at Ancient Waterway," answered Eve. "Although, I know not what lies there."

"I saw the map earlier, that's pass Resiam, I believe," said Aisha. "Quite far, we'll have to go around it and don't we still have to attain that heat source?"

"If they're just going there to gather parts, wouldn't it be wise if we split up?" suggested Raven. "That way we can kill two birds with one stone, easy catch."

"Right, I'll split the group up then," said Elesis. "Elsword, Rena, Aisha, Raven, and I will go pick up the heat source. Eve, Add, Apple, Ara and Subtract will go to Ancient Waterway."

"Seems fair enough," agreed Elsword. He turned to face Chung. "Chung, you're still resting from that battle, right? It's best if you stayed behind."

Chung offered a smile and said, "Seems fair enough. Although, if I had the chance, I'd still like to go."

"Maybe next time, Chung. For now, you rest here in Hamel." Elsword smiled widely and faced his fellow friends, "Let's go kick some demon ass!"

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter! If ya like it so far, please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**Also, thank you to Wmil, clientalvarado and godzeek for adding this fanfiction to his/her follows~! Thank you to Bleachnerd for fav add! Love y'all!**

**Replying to Simon Hinori: TOO BAD, LEARN LIKE I DO! FEEL THE PAIN OF MY SCHOOL! AHHHHHHHH!**


	43. Battle In Ruins

They set off when the sun was slightly setting, prepared with light sources in case their endeavour was prolonged. Splitted up into groups, they went their ways directed by their maps. From bridges to pathways, and pathways to land, and land to stony walks. A fork in the path saw them through and Subtract's group were making their way around Resiam. Water could be seen flooding into the city, covering it in aquarmarine flows.

Considering the day so far, as busy as it was, the sun still rolled slowly throughout the sky. Subtract had heard often of summer where days were long and nights were short. It never mattered to him in Henir as all he was focused on was his sole goal. But now, he found himself interested and staring at the sky as he walked. The bumps beneath his feet did not bother him and he rarely felt them, and stared at the cerulean sky. Clouds alternated between patterns, but never so much covered the sun itself.

Soon, the ruins of white buildings changed to that of golden buildings. Golden ruins, more like, and they stood up like crumbling sentinels. Several streams of golden light poured through holes and cracks, coming from blue crystals that stood on pedestals. Rusted, brown chains were settled into the ground and covered in moss and other algae. Water was rushing around the golden ruins, a lighter blue than the sky.

A gate stood before them, weakened by age and time. Ara swiftly stabbed her spear forth at the gate with force, stabbing at the weakpoints efficiently. Sending the gate crumbling down in dust, a narrow strip of platforms and water awaited their arrival. They walked in together, ready for a fight and already searching for the guardians that were of ancient, Nasod origin. Running forth, they all split from each other further and kept each other within sight. It was easier to spread out than stay cuddled up after all.

Shadow Demons immediately met them with battlecries, running forth to meet the newcomers. Defenders shot their projectiles, which grazed Subtract's cheek. Feeling itchy for a fight, he activated his Time Mode and summoned several spears beside him.

"Operator System Support!" he yelled. His Operators opened up, revealing barrels that twisted and turned. They quickly scattered bullets through the platforms, rattling through the field like a deathly whisper. Apple launched herself into the air, "Assault Spear – Burster!"

A large, white spear along with two Nasod Servants shot down an exploding spear upon the enemies. It didn't finish them off, but it damaged them plenty. A charger nearby chose to run at full speed at her. She managed to dodge with difficulty as the area they were fighting in was quite narrow.

"Motion Blocker!" A barrier appeared in front of the charger, which it crashed into before falling back.

Add jumped up from behind the barrier and let down an erupting force of electricity, "Quake Buster!" Taking the charger along with several other Demons, the golden strip was wiped clean of filth. And Eve flew forth with her drones behind her, spotting a sentinel.

Gracefully spinning in the air, she floated and let down a particle beam that gradually shot through the sentinel. Beeping in annoyance, it took the hit and clapped at her. Taking her out of the air, it attempted to throw her into the water. What happened instead was her grabbing a hold of its head and when it let go of her, she quickly twisted the head around and hopped off. Add let out a whistle, "Nice trick there."

Eve only spared him a look before she dashed ahead to meet the next enemy.

* * *

Resiam was flooding, which prompted the five to move faster. Shadow Demons flooded the area faster than water could move, but there weren't much to begin with. Black Flowers had grown back since the Elgang left and were already pouring down poison gas.

Elsword was already meeting with the Demons, shooting runes and fire at the Demons. Feeling tired from the last battle, he timed his attacks slower and exerted minimal mana. Aisha, knowing this, supported him with spells and buffs. Twirling around in her magic, she teleported between enemies and threw fire balls behind enemies. Her purpose was only to weaken the enemies slightly while Rena showered arrows to pin them down.

"Siege!" Getting into her sieging position, she let loose dozens of arrows at her enemies in an arc. It caught several demons in their legs, slowing their advance. All of them had been tired since the fight so they relied on their teamwork to make it through.

Shadow Defenders laid at the back, far away from their reach. It was as if they already knew, but that was impossible.

"Armageddon!" bellowed Elsword, bringing forth a radiant sword. Slashing and tumbling at the enemies, he cut off their legs with minimal difficulty.

Raven focused his energy on his blade before flashing through the enemies, finishing them off with numerous slices. The Defenders that hid at the back didn't have the energy sources they were looking for, neither did the other Demons. Choosing to continue on, they rushed through the already open gateway and slid down the water slide. White ruins ran backwards as they made their way down in orderly fashion, glimmering in the rolling sun.

Jumping off the end of the slide, more Shadow Demons came to meet them along with Laguzes, spirit ladies with icy fingers. Several of them caught Elsword and Raven offguard with their bubbling attacks, smashing into their tired bones and seeping through their skins.

"Wah, cold!" yelped Elsword. Aisha teleported to their side with a smirk on her face, "Then, let's give them a little toast! Meteor Shower!"

Having saved up her mana, she let down burning meteors that collided with the Demons.

"Way to go," strained Rena, pulling back her bow's string. "Rail Stinger!"

A circle of green was summoned in the air and wings sprouted from the side as she shot her magically infused arrow. It shot through several Demons, but some actually had the sense to jump aside and Defenders laid on top of platforms. Elesis jumped into the air, "Saber – Extinction!" A blaze sliced through the air, slicing off the arms of Demons as it passed.

Raven, taking the role of the finisher, promptly attacked the Demons with blue and silver slashes. A few tried to grab for him and only managed to snick him slightly, but he skilfully dodged around them as if he was dancing. Shooting bullets from his arms as he passed by, he whisked out of the way to let the others pass.

They passed under the white towers, which seemed to swivel until they fell right on top of the five…

* * *

By then, they had all reached the watery parts of the waterway. Not that the whole place wasn't full of water already, the place earned its name of the Ancient Waterway. Long working with Nasod machinery to keep it working.

Monsters lurked below the watery surfaces, gleaming from underneath. Giving them a withering look, Subtract flew above the surface and summoned a twirling symbol above them, "Dust Shower!" Piercing lines travelled straight into the crabs, piranhas, mermen and water spirits, petrifying each and every one of them.

"Energy Needle!" commanded Eve, summoning a drone behind her. It dispersed into the air and into the water, stabbing in and out the enemies. It didn't finish off the enemies, but it scattered their order and made them angry. The water spirits rambled upwards in a disordered fashion, only for Ara to summon black spears to fall down, "Rakshasa Stance 3 : Spear Prison!"

Add had rushed forward, meeting Shadow Demons and mermen.

"What are you doing out of your water? You should be lying in your watery graves!" he taunted, causing them to rush at him. They snarled with bestial grunts, their orange pelts glowering like eyes in the dark. Having applied Stasis field beforehand, he needed only to land in the middle and release an electric shockwave all around him. It managed to stun the Demons, halving their healths. Eve flew over the waters and dodged a weak projectile.

"Incompetent fools," she breathed. She flashed through them along with Oberon, twisting around to order Oberon to release repeated slashes. Apple came up upon the other side and jumped, summoning Persephone to throw pink bombs on them. Repeatedly jumping, she finished them off.

"Where are those guardians?" wondered Apple.

"We'll come across them soon, Apple," said Ara. "Eun says she detects an electrical signal ahead."

"Huh, she can sense electrical signals?" asked Add.

"She's not too accustomed to it, but yes," replied Ara. "Now, I believe we have more watery foes here." And she was right, for there were enemies swimming in the water.

Subtract danced over them before showering down time spears. Several of the water spirits had dodged and shot their freezing bubbles upwards, catching Subtract and dragging him into the watery depths.

"Urgh!" Subtract's front met the cold waters and soon his whole body was engulfed. Before he was dragged into the waters, he ordered his Operators to continue shooting from above. They would not shoot at their master, having been equipped with Aiming Systems, but aim at the enemy. Holding his breath, he opened his eyes and spread out his arms to slow his fall. There were enemies in front of him, smirking widely for their prey. He felt several bites in his sides, but he tried not to mind the pain.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling the enemy move closer and closer. Before he could let out an attack, he felt the piranha bite deeper into his flesh. Letting out a muffled scream, all his air escaped from his lungs.

Several hundred needles pierced through the water surface, shredding the piranhas violently. He felt someone grab onto his hood, pulling him up. The air had never tasted sweeter, but it stung his wounds with its cold bites. The teeth of the air sunk into his bleeding wounds, giving him a feeling like he was being pulled apart.

"Do you love drowning, or something?" Add was staring down at him, grimacing at Subtract's wounds but nonetheless sounding sarcastic. "If you wanted to kiss the fishes, why didn't you say so?"

"Why don't I introduce you to them, then? They're quite lovely, with teeth," retorted Subtract.

"Now, now, we need to tend to your wounds. They've bitten quite deep," pointed out Apple. "Luckily, I brought along some bandages and antiseptic."

Subtract had barely hissed at the antiseptic, having compared the stinging with the piranhas' bite, he knew clearly which were worse. It helped him deal with pain at times. If he could imagine a pain greater than his current situation, he could bare it and right now, he could come up with a million different types of pain that were worse. Yet, he let out a muffled scream in the water. He guessed that there was no way to get used to pain for sure. You could become numb to it, but pain's pain all the same.

"Do we have a map of the Ancient Waterway? I'd like to see where we are," requested Eve, sitting on her enlarged drone.

"I managed to find some replica of the map," said Apple, passing a screen to her Queen. Eve stared emotionlessly at the map before closing the map.

"We're nearly halfway. I think we should reach the guardians pretty soon, but let's prepare a strategy first. We don't want anymore injuries when we've just come here to collect cores."

"What do you suggest?"

"Well, put simply…"

* * *

The white tower was swivelling and tumbling down from its long stand, causing the grounds to quake with its fall. It fell and it fell slow, giving them enough time to run underneath it. White stone smashed against white stone, dust flew against dust, gilded gold against gilded silver. Barely escaping the crash, several stones cut through the air and managed to hit their backs.

"Ow!" groaned Elsword. "It hit my butt."

"Geez, are you a child, or what, Elbaka? They're just rocks."

"For rocks, they hurt."

Elesis shook her head happily, "Woman up, Els."

"Clever," commented Raven.

Elsword pouted and turned his focus to the enemy in front. The narrow pathway continued in a downwards slope and another white tower stood, ready to collapse with black shadows edging around it. Aisha teleported quickly in front, prompting the tower to fall before teleporting back.

Shadow Demons came scuttling towards them, their cores glowing darkly in an orange ember. The Defenders let out a wave of projectiles forward, whistling through the air in a shadowy embrace.

Rena stood in siege mode and shot at the projectiles, accurately pinpointing them and destroying them. Aisha teleported through the enemies, hitting them with fireballs and occasionally, star balls. Shadow Walkers gathered in groups, slightly spread apart from Aisha's flashing attacks.

Elsword, panting slightly and dusted, exploded a rune at the first Walker and rolled over a couple. He took a quick swig of a mana potion before throwing it at a nearing Charger.

"Rising Slash!" Empowering his fist with a powerful flame, he smashed it into the ground. The fierce energy rippled on both sides of him, rising magical swords cleaving through the enemies around him. The water spirits made soundless growls and blew their water bubbles at him. He swiftly dodged away, "Not this time."

Raven quickly hopped onto the platforms and slashed at the spirits, taking them unawares with his shadow walk. There were still Shadow Demons running towards them and some of them leaped, hoping to get to the five faster. It was a foolish endeavour and Aisha had been awaiting them, recharging her own mana. She flashed towards the advancing group and let out an energy wave from her wand. Covering herself in purple energy, she raised upwards before stomping the ground. She had sent them all flying and tumbling down the slope once more. It was a beautiful sight for sure, to see the stumbling fools sent spraying all over the white floors. Had Aisha's stomp been so powerful enough to send limbs flying?

Elesis rushed downwards to make sure and with a blazing sword, she shot flames as she ran. The flaming fireballs fought at the Shadow's hides, roasting and cooking it to perfection. They roared, bellowed, hissed and yelled with demonic voices as they burned. But carry on they did, even when their eyes were rolling out of their sockets and arms hanging from their shoulders by a thread.

"Fire Wall!" she shouted, summoning a wall of fire that snared the Demons. She jumped above and shot hellfire from her blade, latching onto their heads. When the flames died out, more Demons scrambled over the dead corpses to which Raven met.

"Shockwave – Divider!" He sent a blue slash ripping through the air and cutting through his enemies, pushing them back. When he landed, he punched the ground and invited spikes stabbing into their hides. Several demon cores had fallen onto the ground by then and the five wasted no time in picking several up, just in case.

"Hot, hot, hot!" said Elsword. "In the name of El, will these burn us by the time we reach Hamel?"

"Lemme just…cast this handy spell," muttered Aisha. She placed a water seal on each, covering them in a blue layer of magic. They were cooler and easier to hold, conveniently small and ripe for the pocketing. The sun was almost setting and they were making their way back with their backs turned on the bloody corpses they left behind.

* * *

There were Ancient Nasod Guardians standing, grey in colour and blue with their glowing orbs. They stood still like Sentinels with their arms joined in their side, awaiting them like big walls. They stood silent with their brick-like body staring at the five. It was strange. Even though the golden ruins stood tall around them, the Guardians looked considerably large. Moss growing on them did not do anything to affect their intimidation. Green as they were, fresh as they were.

A red headed demon sat in his machine, whirling around on a blue gemstone the size of a large vase. Sentinels, shadow linkers, cockatrigles, mini sentinels and guardians decorated the strip of old stone. Running to clash with the cockatrigles, Subtract blinked above it and stabbed its neck into the ground. He sent pulses running through the spear, electrifying the cockatrigle to near-death. He hopped to the next cockatrigle and brought it down the same way before being latched onto by Shadow Links, slowing his movements.

Apple was gliding behind him and called forth her Charon to send several slashes into the air, "Space Wrench!"

It dragged the shadow linkers back, severing the tie. The guardians on platforms finally awoke and twisted around, freeing their overgrown arms. With their cores emanating an electric glow, they shot forth grey projectiles into the air.

"Motion Blocker!" Subtract set up a barrier big enough to collide with all projectiles.

Add, Ara and Eve went under, side by side, charging at linkers and mini sentinels. Having been rested, they let forth clearing attacks that pushed smaller enemies aside. It sent them sprawling into the waters for the fishes to take them to their graves. Mini sentinels were definitely heavy, despite their size. They would drown beneath the surfaces and cease to function. Meanwhile linkers were not swimmers.

Bizarre Conrad was whirring in his seat, his blue complexion matching that of the waters on both sides. He spoke not a word, but groomed his beard before he sent Nasod Spikes at them. Subtract simply flew over them and rained space fragments, setting them off as explosions. This only served to stun him.

Whilst Add, Ara and Eve dealt with the mob, Apple took up her position on a platform. She raised one hand in the air and directed her hand down to send a fist from the Heavens. It came smashing down onto Conrad, skidding him immediately to the side. Swirls for eyes were not an exaggeration, but the old man recovered quickly and whisked out a cannon. Silently, he shot a stinging bullet at Apple which narrowly missed her. Conrad threw the cannon at her afterwards, but it only plopped down onto the ground uselessly.

"Feeling old? It's time you lay down your failed machinery, then," said Eve, each word a venom. "Genocide Ripper!"

Oberon appeared and quickly dug out the space Conrad was in, dealing horrendous damage as he flashed back and forth. Conrad bled heavily, taking on the damage on full brunt. He closed his old eyes for a moment, his machine hissing smokes and buzzing electricity. He was tired, the old man knew, he was tired and he was old. An engineer who recently took up the knowledge of Nasods and failed in his endeavour. Opening his eyes to the golden scenery, he slid towards them and pressed a button on his machine. Beeping sounds could be heard.

"Sorry, but your time is already up," said Subtract. The air around him distorted extremely to the point ripples took their place. "Burst Streak."

Spears bursted through the air, decorated with turquoise linings and onyx metal. It slammed into Conrad and blew through him like paper, shredding his machine without a hitch. He was old, weak and dying, his former strength no longer a part of him. Subtract had met him several times, but never befriended him or anyone else. Death had always been a part of the old man's destiny.

"Well, we've defeated several guardians in this area," said Apple. "We might as well take the cores for ourselves."

"Right," said Ara. She did feel sorry for Conrad, being an old man who was mostly defenceless and weak. A non-participant with sympathetic views, Eun almost laughed at that but chose to keep it down.

Subtract stared at the spot where Conrad died and it was nothing but a bloody mess. Letting out a sigh, he turned his back on the mess and began picking up the fallen cores. The sun was setting and darkness was ravaging through the lands, sweeping the lush greens and old ruins. Still, it was light enough for them to head back to Hamel and in Hamel, they'd find rest.

* * *

**A/N: Aaaaand that's the end of the chapter~! Please review/favourite/follow/share~!**

**IntrovertedRabbit: Depends on what kind of fanfic it is. Send me a PM, telling the details of the fanfic and I'll consider.**


	44. Blade At Throat

Night had given Hamel a graceful look under its cover of darkness. Soon, it was swallowed whole and lit by the whimsical sky, stars decorating the blue sea. Time had whittled away at the people in the streets, hushing them inside as it grew darker still. It was a cloudy sky, but the moon seemed fighting to break from the clouds. The fiery eyes below lined the city in its stands and glowered at those who walked late in the city. Washed white marble danced in their flickering lights with the slapping sound of water nearby.

The inns were mostly empty with almost no tourists in their non-lit rooms. It was the emptiness that scared the Princess as she stood upon a high balcony. Hamel was so silent with only the flames to crackle and water to slap their slaps. Maybe the town was playing a percussion with its hollow rooms and buildings. A percussion with a sad sound, mourning the loss of their protector. Except that, their protector wasn't dead, but alive and teeming with bloodthirst. Bloodthirst that would destroy the city itself and its hollow sounds.

Apple knew that. She sighed to herself, head propped up on both her arms as she leaned against the railing. There weren't many tall buildings in Hamel surprisingly so the sky appeared to devour her whole.

"Taking a break?"

Apple quickly straightened herself.

"Relax, it's just me," said Eve, hands latching onto the railing. She was wearing a white night gown and several soft silks, covering her shoulders. Starlight highlighting her jewels, white pearl and sapphire, all glimmering slightly. Following behind Eve were her drones, both lighting the balcony.

"Mother, what are you doing here? I thought you'd be asleep by now," remarked Apple.

Eve studied her daughter a bit before closing her eyes, facing the city, "Is it strange for me to visit you?"

Apple was slightly taken aback and waved both her hands in the air in dismissal, "No, not at all!"

Eve's eyes opened slowly, watching the city with an empty gaze. She didn't say anything, which made Apple a bit uneasy.

"Is something the matter?"

"I vowed to myself that I would let you do what you desire, and even now, I am not inclined to stop you…but, I'm not sure if what you're doing is purely your choice."

Apple tilted her head in confusion.

"I was convinced when I observed the cores we brought back from the Ancient Waterway. Those cores are similar to what we have used back in the day to share information between Nasods."

Apple stiffened and Eve watched.

"Apple, if this is out of the attachment to the past, I advise you stop what you're doing immediately and destroy those cores."

Apple opened her mouth, but chose to close it.

"What happened in the past is not your fault, but mine and the Nasod King's alone. We were the ones who carried out that plan, only to fail miserably. We placed the burden, then, on you and expected you to carry out your duty. Only, I had arrived before you proceeded on with the plan and managed to stop you."

"Yes, you did, but…"

The Queen put her hand up, telling Apple to let her continue speaking.

"I assume you have told Subtract, but not the whole truth, yes?"

"I gave him a version of the truth."

"Why? Why not just tell him the whole truth? If you did, you wouldn't be needing to act out of guilt. Apple, you must tell him."

"I will, one day."

"That is good. Now, answer me this. Are you doing this out of your own responsibility, or ours?"

"Mother, I want to do this. Not just out of guilt and responsibility, but…"

"But?"

"…I trust him, and not just that."

"Not just that?"

"I believe I have feelings for him."

"I already knew that."

Apple was surprised, "You knew?"

Eve nodded and Apple blushed. The night was chilly and Apple wished she brought something warmer. She still wore her pink dress, short as it was. It was the most convenient for fighting, especially when she needed to move fast. Suddenly, she was nervous and turned to pick at the peeling white paint on the railing.

"Mother…what if…what if he doesn't feel the same?"

The princess is afraid, thought Eve. She looked out onto the city with Apple, scanning over the silent streets. It almost reminded her of her dead kingdom, the way she looked at it. And swore. Swore that she would bring it back to its former greatness. And this time, there will be no war.

"I'm no expert on love, nor do I love…"

"Add?"

Eve stopped altogether and stared at her daughter in silence. She didn't speak a word, yet she could feel something hot coming up her cheeks.

"Mother?" Eve was at a further distance. Apple called out again, only to see that her mother distanced herself further and further until Apple was alone. Frowning, she did not follow. Her mother had acted weird upon the mention of the name. When she realised the meaning of it, she opened her mouth widely for a moment before closing it.

Latching onto the railing, her fingers delicately gripped the marble as she stared over the streets. Almost sinking into her own thoughts, she heard someone walking into the balcony. Perhaps, it's mother… but she was wrong.

He didn't say anything, yet Apple knew who it was judging by the footsteps. She prided herself on being observative.

"Taking a break?" asked Apple.

"No more than what you're doing," he responded shortly.

"Well, we were working on the device into the night," she spoke.

"And still have a lot to do," he sighed. He clung onto the railing, too, and rested his head on his arms. Apple studied him, looking at the way his dark blue eyes skim through Hamel and the way his raven black hair ruffled in the air. Not noticing the thumping of her heart in her chest, she just looked and was content. But then, there were the bandages wrapped around him. One on his wrist, one around his neck and many a bandages underneath.

"Are your wounds alright?"

"Alright enough." The conversation stalled before dispersing into the night once more. They both stood there, enjoying the silence and suddenly Apple didn't dislike the hollowness of the town anymore. The beauty of the town revealed itself to her and the moon broke free of the clouds. Waters glimmered whitely, white marble danced in the moonlight, fires swirled in their stands as the wind started to pick up pace. The blue of the city disguised itself into the shadows, making them appear like sapphires under the dark. This silence was nice for once and she enjoyed it.

"Well!" breathed Apple, spreading out her arms before laying it at her hips. "We best get working again, or we won't get anything done!"

Subtract's eyes were widened at the sudden loudness and returned her gaze.

"We just need to synchronise the cores, right?"

"Right, and then it's on to calibrating them and setting it to my signal. You're to implement the codes I sent to you to the computer afterwards before rebooting the old system."

"And compressing the programs to a simpler form, I get it."

Apple smiled, "Well, what are we waiting for then?"

* * *

Elsword and the others sat in the dining room of the Castle. Chung had invited them from the inns to stay at his home where maids, trainees, squires and knights stood about. It was a big castle and to which some of the Elgang was frustrated about. Not everyone had a good sense of direction, but Chung only smiled and said the people of the castle shall be their guidance. Not like Add played well at asking and wondered on his own, only to turn up lost but with a map of the castle instead.

There was a feast welcoming the Elgang to Hamel, albeit too grand.

On the table sat ham studded with cloves and basted with honey and dried cherries, onions in gravy, salad of green beans, onions and beets, venison pies with carrots, bacon and mushrooms, blandissory with a mixture of beef broth and boiled wine sweetened with honey and dotted with blanched almonds and chunks of capon. A shame Subtract and Apple decided to eat the leftovers in their rooms because the feast were both great and filled with drunken tales.

"Ah, I'm so full," whined Aisha. "Can't fit another spoonful."

"Your stomach is young, no wonder," joked Rena.

"Aren't you eating too much, Ara?" sweated Raven, watching Ara finish a bowl of soup.

"Hm? I'm not full yet," she answered.

"Hmph, all the food goes to your breasts," jested Eun. Ara reddened at the jest and slowly put down her spoon, suddenly full.

Meanwhile, Elsword, Elesis and Captain were discussing what was to be done next.

"We've handed the stone to Horatio already, but what do you suspect will be asked of us next?" questioned Elsword.

"Well, there was some small town talk that the Duke has gone missing," said Captain.

"There it is, then, we search for him. What do you know about him?"

"Duke Rod Ross…I've heard he was a fool and others a great Duke. He's a lover of water spirits, otherwise."

"Uncertain, is it? How long has he been missing?"

"As soon as you arrived, Elesis. His secretary is almost out of her wits, saying she'll go find him if we Red Knights don't hurry."

"Sounds like she's been in your hair."

"No less than the Demons have. She threatened me several times today already."

"We'll get him then. We do need someone with a greater grasp on the situation."

"You wound me, Elesis."

If she was flustered, she did not show it and apologised instead, "I apologise. I mean to know the truth behind the Demon's invasion. Hamel was suppose to be full of protectors and its defence strong, but it has fallen so far as to lose its loyal Colossus. And who's better to know it than the Duke of Hamel?"

Captain shrugged, "The last time I saw him, he did nothing to defend his city. Although, I do not know the full details as well. It'd serve well to get him back. His secretary might have more information on his whereabouts, but even that is uncertain. She's said nothing about his whereabouts."

"Wouldn't hurt to try," remarked Elsword.

* * *

The room that had been spared for them was quite bland and simple, having several glass tables and an iron chandelier encrusted with silver, holding candles hidden in white glass, and two beds with silky blankets and marble frames, and a desk with a shiny mirror standing atop it. Paintings decorated the walls with pictures of old Dukes and their magnificence, but even they looked plain, and nothing helped brighten up the room.

Technology was strewn across the glass tables with wires scattered about in an orderly chaos. Screens showed panels of codes, cores were held in glossy stands, wires were attached to about almost everything, screws were dotted on a separate table along with carved out parts and a device in the making on the middlemost table. Subtract was typing codes into the computer at god speed, eyes mirroring back the many codes staring back.

After a few minutes, the cores were synchronised and each glowed blue with the same tones. They blazed as if they were alive, but gave off a pale feeling as pale as death itself. The room was flushed in blue as the orbs brightened still, but none of the two faced directly to see it. The device was completed as a headgear and Apple wore it, crowning around the pink gem on her forehead. Fiddling with the buttons on the headgear, it beeped once to tell her it synchronised with her signal. The wire connected to it slid down to the cores, which was connected to the computer Subtract was on. Apple only needed to sit and wait as Subtract typed away.

"It is done," he reported.

"Right," she responded and closed her eyes. Several code strings flickered across her core, showing up on each of the cores. The information dripped into the computer, showing up as programs with written data. Subtract started decoding the first pages of information, reading them as he read through. Information of Nasods passed through, but that wasn't what he was searching for. He kept waiting and waiting until something relevant showed up.

Several files of relevance passed through and he set the computer to compiling them in a separate folder straight away. Factors that could bend time were in those files, he found. Gravity could bend time. If he somehow attained powers that bent gravity to his will, might he be able to bend time itself. That was exactly what he was looking for—but something was missing. Although, he never got the time to research time and space travelling properly. He knew for one fact, that time travelling (for now) forward was the only possible way.

_I won't accept that, though._

He frowned, a migraine forming. There were so much nonsensical data of weapons and little bits of time travel, all such a mess streaming through Apple's head. Why is it such a mess, goddamnit? His fingers tapped irritatingly on the keyboard before stopping altogether. He stopped because a coldness was slightly biting into his skin, gripping his neck like hands itching to choke. He stopped because death was at hand and he stood before the door, as vulnerable as a child. He stopped because someone was holding a blade before his neck. A red line quickly rushed along his neck, dropping fat drops of blood…blue in the light of brimming cores.

* * *

**A/N: And that's the end of the chapter~ Please review/favourite/follow/share~!**


	45. Bad End Start Pt 1

**Ehhhk~I'm alive and here's a chapter. I think I crappily did it-BUT HEY I JUST DID MY EXAMS ASUHDFUSO-/shot So you can bag my ass for the late update .**

* * *

The blade at his throat refused to withdraw. He didn't dare move from his seat, nor did he turn his head. It pressed and it pressed closely, stinging and sharp. It was a silver blade, held like a baton from a certain Nasod. Its face was black and faceless still. Subtract had tried to sort the mess of codes together, but he guessed that the notion was taken as a threat.

"Do it, and I'll kill you," threatened Eve. His eyes looked to his left, seeing Eve standing by the doorway.

"I didn't know it would be that dangerous," he responded, and he told the truth. After all, the menacing tone in Eve's voice seem to think Subtract knew what he was doing. He would stop without a doubt, and leave Apple's codes in a mess…until he knew the answer. "So, why are her codes a mess?"

"There's no need to tell you that."

Eve had Oberon withdraw the blade and disappear into the air, "I think you've got enough information."

"As the Queen says." Subtract shrugged and closed down his programs, powering down the cores immediately. Apple's fazed eyes gradually returned to colour as her breathing resumed.

"Mother?" Her gaze moved onto Subtract where her eyes widened. "Subtract, you're bleeding!"

"I'm aware," he breathed. It was starting to sting and Apple magically brought out a first aid kit out of nowhere, immediately setting to bandage Subtract's cut.

"You haven't healed completely from the battle today. Do you have a knack for getting wounded?" she asked. She dotted a cotton ball on the blood, carefully wiping away the red smear.

"I don't," he responded, sighing. "Just a friendly greeting from Eve here."

Apple gave Eve a knowing look and dabbed antiseptic onto his cut, before wrapping a bandage around his neck tightly.

"I think you should check up on your brother," suggested Eve, crossing her arms and leaning on the door. She seemed to have forgotten what she did in a flash. How convenient.

"Why would I do that?" questioned Subtract. Eve turned her head to face Subtract, eyes avoiding him as she assumed a pursed look.

"Add and you are brothers. It seems that he worries for you a lot, but you never do the same. If you are family, you better pay the same loyalty," she answered. "Even if he did abandoned you, he never stopped thinking about the guilt that eroded him overtime."

Subtract didn't respond, but rather sighed and stood up. When he came close to Eve, he muttered, "Messed up quite a bit, didn't you?"

Eve tensed up and looked to the side, completely avoiding his gaze. She felt guilty than she had ever before. It was almost silly, considering she was a Nasod with a lack of emotions. Yet, what she did back then in that room, was absolute folly. Nothing she was proud of doing and it stained her honour as a Queen. And she was sure, she'd never get to talk to Add again.

Subtract realised. He had no fucking idea where Add's room was. Sighing against the air, he found himself near the bathroom area. It was eerily empty and void of anyone's existence, but he saw that one of the bathrooms were being used. Not wanting to be some creep, he only knocked on the door and waited for a response. When there was none, he was about to turn and leave.

"Eve?"

Recognising the voice, he stopped in his tracks and turned back to the door. At first, he didn't say anything.

"I told you, there's nothing fucking wrong."

Sighing for the third time, Subtract opened the door which was surprisingly unlocked. Add was at the sink, looking into the mirror when he quickly turned around. One eye was normal with its magenta hue, but the other was against a backdrop of black. It was just pure black with another drop of magenta floating around on it. They both stared in horror at him, but Subtract's face was just neutral. He wasn't surprised. He had done research on this before. The fact that messing with time and space would gradually corrupt you was not a surprise.

"Corruption, huh, did you just get this today?" asked Subtract. Add seemed to calm down, seeing that Subtract didn't react like Eve did. Oh, when she found out, it was not a pleasant sight.

Add turned back to the mirror to fumble around with something.

"So it's true that normal people corrupt faster," scoffed Subtract, leaning on the door frame.

"You know about this?"

"When you're researching time and space, you're bound to come across corruption sooner or later. It's certainly a dangerous thing."

Add turned around, holding an eyepatch in his hand. His hands raise to the front of his head as he puts the eyepatch on the corrupted eye, tying it tightly.

"What about you then? Kek, I don't see you being corrupted."

"Hmph, maybe it's because I'm made up of time and space particles? Don't be mistaken, though. I'm still human with a similar body structure, so sooner or later, I'll end up dying from the corruption. Heh, I'm even becoming somewhat similar to that person."

"Who?"

Subtract gave Add a look and felt like answering him for a moment, but turned to leave instead.

DESOLATION – BAD END BEGIN

Apple and Eve had already left the room to which Subtract assumed to talk. He didn't mind anyway, he wanted to get on the data he received from Apple right away. Still bothered by her messed up codes, he slowly turned on his machinery and started typing away. He had so much to do and so much concepts in his head. He ordered his Operators to help him with his work.

He hadn't gotten much time to work on his research when the Elgang had been dragging him everywhere. Never did he think that at the beginning of this journey that he would be dragged from Altera to Hamel. Seeing a map earlier, made him realise how far he had gone.

"Fucking crazy," he swore, though he smiled. Smiled and he didn't realise it. He had fun, there was no doubting that. He fought monsters that were relatively easy so it was a big cool off from his regular training. How many times did he die, he wondered? Dying was always meant to be painful, but when he heard of people dying peacefully in their sleep. He got jealous, envious and angry even. Why should he have to go through having guts spluttered, hearts ripped out, eyes being gouged out and several thousands of others die without pain? He never wasted time on the answer, of course, such wasn't his intention. But it ate at him all the same. Maybe that was the reason he was so sadistic in his fights.

Maybe, just maybe, he'd like to see the same happen with the Elgang—but that was just a really dark thought. He didn't really want to see them harmed. After all, they've been taking care of him all this time. They may have been his enemy at first, but they were his allies now. He couldn't think of them dead, no—that was just too twisted. He was their comrade now, right? They thought of him as their comrade, right? Or maybe they let you in because honestly, you'd kill them if it meant killing Add, yes? Subtract put down his hand for a moment, processing the thought. Was that the reason the Elgang let him in? If they hadn't let him in, sure, he would chase after the Elgang and try to kill Add. That was still his goal back then. Now? He wasn't going to kill Add. He had a higher goal than that.

He wanted to go back, even if there was no home to return to. Maybe he wouldn't be able to return to the future—maybe he couldn't see Apple anymore. He bit his lip and shook his head. Subtract had gone this far into his research and he wasn't going to put it to a waste. Surely, it would be worth all this time. He wasn't going to waste it. He wasn't going to. He wasn't.

When the sun rose up, he had done a lot of progress since last night. A flat, black device sat in front of him along with some used tools. Having used some of his own blood, he was able to make a core that took advantage of his genes. He made a power core made out of his own blood. Subtract would be able to wear it underneath since it wasn't exactly fashionable. In the centre was a circle, infused with spatial and temporal particles. It was dark blue and almost aquamarine in appearance.

He would still have things to go through, of course. He just made a miniature time machine. With this, he could go back if he wanted to with the appropriate coding and equipment. Should he require more time in the spatial dimension, he might have to create a mechanized suit. Of course, there should be enough time considering. There would be a need to back to Altera for a short while to make the suit and he was sure he could travel back alone. Although, he was pretty sure Apple would want to come with him. He smiled. Who knows? Maybe some company wouldn't be too bad…

Suddenly, he heard someone scream in fear. Without a thought, he rushed out with his Operators following behind him. A maid was standing in front of a window, hands clasped to her mouth as her eyes shook in dismay. Frowning, he walked over to her and asked, "What's wrong?"

The maid only pointed her finger in the air, shaking. Following the finger, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Outside was a courtyard with a thin angel, pouring water out of its hands. Its wings were stretched out, but its head…its head was impaled with a black blade. A thin black blade, almost resembling in appearance of a spear. But…there was blood trickling down from the blade.

Subtract had no words because a head was attached to the blade. He had no words because it was someone he knew. He uttered a choking sound, seeing that it was Apple's head atop the blade's point.

* * *

**A/N: Yeah, I did that. Yeah. That's the end, but I did that. Do leave a review/favourite/follow/share~! O uo b**

**And oh, 16,000 view. Holy fucking shit. I'm going to like...die. Goodly. :)**


	46. Half-Assed Reality is getting rewritten

No kidding, the title is telling the truth and you may call the CIA (whatever secret police/assassination force) on my ass. Because literally, I think I deserve a good target on my back right at this point in life. I do not have an excuse for these past hundreds of weeks, other than I was reinventing Subtract. When I first made HAR, I intended to make Subtract the "opposite" of Add, but he technically is the same as him now. Both working with similar goals with similar personalities.

So...yes, I'm discontinuing HAR and rewriting it into something proper. I will not delete this fanfiction so that's a plus in some way? But just to give some information: Subtract **will** be the opposite of Add. His backstory will be different as well as his abilities-and I'm not going to give Subtract the messed up battle style he has now, I'm actually giving him a proper class with proper actives and special actives.

You want a little peek? Well, it's not official lines but...

"Your clothes is untiDY! fiX iT!"

"Don't you get close to me, you're fucking sweating."

"You just poured shit everywhere and made more work for me, and you expect me to offer you what now?"

"But, Add, they're clean enoUGH =3= I even put some water on them!"

"Ehh? But that's because we were literally fighting in an inferno."

"Some help, is all. *smiles* "


	47. UPDATE

**I am ready to be killed-ducks-or am I?**

**Well, this is going to contain some shameless self-advertisement but-If you want to gain updates on the rewriting of HAR, please redirect yourself to desolatedchronos in Tumblr. I haven't posted anything related to the rewrite yet, but I will give you some information below:**

**Title of rewrite: Sicut Pollicitus Est (Latin for As Promised)**

**Main Character: Subtract, actual name: Carna Grenore.**

**Related to Main Character: Add and Henna.**

**Henna: "The Darkness must always play as the bad guy in the end."**

**Subtract's new features: A new battle system that actually makes sense, has magenta eyes but wears blue eye contacts, wears bright-coloured clothes, seems to understand and comprehend things quickly, and has countless of lies fabricated.**

**=w= Yaya, that's all I'll give. This fanfiction will be officially closed and further update information is on desolatedchronos in Tumblr.**


	48. Pretty Vital to Read

**(this was also published on SiF, but I'll just be lazy and use this anyway xD)**

**Eventually, if I ever get my butt to actually be satisfied with the numerous rewriting-I'm mostly dissatisfied with my writing style. . Reason why? It actually has a lot of grammatical errors and I haven't actually been reading books lately. As for the actual reason behind my months of disappearance? Well, you know, I do have a life. As well as a lot of shit having went on. With school, I've had to drop several subjects and reschedule my whole senior years to a more suitable time table (and give myself more time). The changes were pretty recent (and I'm undergoing exams right now) so now I'll finally be able to get some breathing space.**

**Also recent review - Pretty much the above paragraph. Everyone has a life? There are a lot of writers who I do see abandoning their stories for legitimate reasons. Not everyone has the time to work on a hobby, much less when it doesn't gain much recognition. This website lets you see the statistics of the amount of readers of each chapter. And it's pretty much a common sight to see the reader count declining with each chapter. It is rather underestimated on how much this affects the writer's motivation. A lot of fanfiction writers just give up because of factors like this. Either life has gotten too busy, or they lost motivation from lack of confidence.**

**If you check on websites like Tumblr, there are frequent posts about readers who don't comment as often, or even give it a fav (moreso like a thumbs up on YouTube). It allows writers to know that someone is actually reading their work, that someone is actually giving our hard work attention. However, it is well-known that even things like original art, or just fan fictions in general, are getting less and less recognition. People just read a chapter and then never return. We put so much of our effort, our own time, our knowledge, and even our sweat, blood and tears into these chapters-only for it to never get appreciated.**

**It's a common tragedy and I'm sure you readers see this happening often.**

**ALSO KOG NEVER STOPS UPDATING ELSWORD'S STORY. SO IN FEAR OF DISRUPTING SOMETHING HUGELY CANON, I HAVE TO KEEP WAITING. ;; DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIN?!1**

**But enough of the negative bs, I'll probably delete the old fanfictions and replace it with something else. Also, sort of going between Ao3/Tumblr and this website. Hectic publishing to do. For now, I've been putting my own life as first priority (which makes sense, right? Or is selfishness the modern ethics nowadays?) and will return probably by the end of this year.**


	49. A better excuse (info about Ain)

**I'm one of those people who come up with excuses long after the situation-is anyone else like this?! XD I'd be the worst liar tbh, because it's hard to come up with lies sometimes.**

**Alright, here's an excuse that might give you some solace (killmeformakingapunpls). Some of you may be aware that Elsword is undergoing many plot updates, like the Frozen Memory of the Sun (giving the real details about Solace's past). As you might've heard as a rumour, there is a new character coming to town. His name is Ain and is a missionary from Ishmael. It's been said that after the El's explosion, he himself wandered around in chaos, a darkness for so long. The light of the El gradually guided him to the outside world and he was given a mission by Ishmael. **

**He might have a high and mighty attitude as some of the translations about his teaser have hinted. He's been in the game long before the teasers, however. :) How I know this? Check out adriannefamily on tumblr, they translate Korean to English in good detail. **

**Right now, I'm waiting for more updates from adriannefamily. Why? Because I don't want to have plot holes in the rewrite, to miss plot points that would be crucial. I also want to put Ain into the story xD and his release date is on December 7th in KR. So unfortunately, the rewrite will be postponed to maybe next year. ;; **


End file.
